Blood Curse
by Kyogre
Summary: Complete, Vampire AU. Tsuna is kidnapped so his blood can be used to revive an ancient vampire. Fortunately, Giotto spares his life and helps him escape. Unfortunately, Vongola, the group Giotto had created, is now after them, and there is still the issue of why Giotto sealed himself away in the first place…
1. Vampire

~.~.~

**Title:** Blood Ties

**Summary:** Vampire AU. Tsuna is kidnapped so his blood can be used to revive an ancient vampire. Fortunately, Giotto spares his life and helps him escape. Unfortunately, Vongola, the group Giotto had created, is now after them, and there is still the issue of why Giotto sealed himself away in the first place… (G27-ish)

**Notes:** Title is subject to change, so if you have any suggestions, I'll be happy to hear it.

~.~.~

**CHAPTER 1 Vampire**

Tsuna woke up slowly and painfully. His head was pounding, and his throat felt like sandpaper. His limbs wouldn't respond as he tried to move, and all he could do was cringe away from the bright electric lights that seemed to shine down from all around him.

When he tried to figure out what had happened, he found his memories a confused mess — flashes of being confronted by a stranger, dark and dangerous, of running, of his heart pounding in fear and exertion, of getting cornered and…

His memories cut off there. He thought he might have awakened before, but all that was left were vague impressions.

Forcing his dry throat to work, Tsuna swallowed heavily. He understood now — he had been kidnapped.

"Voi! The brat's awake!" someone snapped, in sharp, short Italian. Or at least that's what Tsuna thought he had said. His Italian, which he had only studied because it was his father's first language, was rather weak.

That loud voice was familiar.

Finally adjusting to the light, Tsuna opened his eyes.

He was lying on a damp, stone floor, the individual bricks cracked and discolored with age. A few broken pillars rose up around him, casting long shadows in the floodlights that had been set up in a circle around where Tsuna lay.

Or rather, around the strange crystal behind him. It towered over him, rising out of the broken flagstones and catching the beams of the floodlights to shine softly. Tsuna had never seen anything like it, but he was in no position to marvel for long.

He couldn't see much in the darkness beyond the circle of lights, only hear muted voices whispering to each other, but there was a single figure in the circle with him — a tall man with long pale hair. He was the one who had spoken before.

His face was shadowed, but Tsuna's still foggy mind recognized him. This was the person that he had been running from.

Instinctively, Tsuna tried to push himself away, only to end up tripping over himself and banging his head against the stones.

"Let's begin," someone called out, from the shadows behind the floodlights. "Squalo, add the reagent."

The tall pale-haired man — Squalo? — sneered down at Tsuna and hauled him up by the back of his sweatshirt, dragging him toward the massive crystal. A sword sprang out of a hidden scabbard in his sleeve, and he slowly moved the blade closer to Tsuna's face.

"Don't move," Squalo told him, smirking, "or my hand might slip."

Despite his words, Tsuna couldn't quite fight down a flinch as the sword cut slowly and methodically into the side of his neck. Blood ran along its length and down Tsuna's shoulder, soaking into his sweatshirt.

As the blade was drawn away, the wound fortunately shallow, Tsuna slumped, shivering in fear and pain.

Squalo flicked his sword clean of blood, which splattered against the crystal, leaving a crimson trail across its smooth surface.

Tsuna followed a moment later, hitting the crystal hard enough to drive the air from his lungs. By the time he regained his bearings, Squalo had backed away, his sword held up in what almost looked like a defensive position. In the dark shadows behind the floodlights, Tsuna thought he saw other figures step forward, their weapons glinting faintly.

It took him a moment to understand — they couldn't have possibly thought he was that much of a threat to them.

…They weren't looking at him.

Tsuna turned slowly, apprehensively. He could just make out the way his blood seemed to be… absorbed by the crystal, just before it began to glow.

As it lit up from inside, Tsuna finally noticed something that had been hidden by the glare and refraction of the floodlights.

There was a man inside the crystal.

~.~.~

This realization was quickly followed by another.

That wasn't a crystal. It was ice.

Something that might have been steam or a very pale flame blazed outward as the "crystal" disintegrated, disappearing completely into waves of heat and what felt like pure energy.

Squinting against the light, Tsuna could see the man that had been inside drop down into the ruined stones that had once also been encased in the strange ice. However, his posture was not of someone unconscious. Instinctively, he had caught himself, landing in a crouch.

Slowly, his eyes opened — a piercing golden amber that seemed to glow from within.

From the moment he took his first breath, the man's gaze snapped toward Tsuna, locking on his neck and the still bleeding wound. When Tsuna swallowed heavily, his eyes followed the movement with distinctly predatory attention.

It was too much, and Tsuna tried to flee, scrambling away on all fours, crablike. He didn't get far, the man's hand shooting out to grab hold of his sweatshirt and haul him closer, until they were pressed against each other.

Terrified out of his mind, Tsuna still managed to flush in teenage embarrassment before the man's lips were suddenly pressed against his neck. Something — his tongue — lapped against the open wound and blood flowing out, and there was the faint brush of teeth against his skin.

In the background, Tsuna thought he could hear the unseen observers hissing something to each other. The ones with the weapons shifted, tension in their frames. But none of them appeared scared or even surprised.

This was probably the reason they had kidnapped him and brought him there in the first place.

He couldn't believe they would go through all the trouble just for a bit of blood, and the thought sent a renewed shiver of fear through his body.

Tsuna whimpered, his hands coming up to clutch at the man's worn white shirt. He squeezed his eyes shut as what was definitely fangs, longer than any human should have, pressed into his skin.

And then… To his shock, the man just stopped. The fangs were pulled away, and the man drew a sharp breath, as if startled awake.

"U-um…" Tsuna stammered, trembling all over. He couldn't find any words for this situation. What could you even say to someone who unthawed from a giant ice crystal? His brain completely stalling, Tsuna blurted out, "Are you okay?"

The man pulled away enough to meet Tsuna's eyes, though they were still close enough for their breaths to mix in the small gap between their faces. His eyes were still a burning, molten color that didn't seem to belong on a human being.

His brow furrowed and an expression Tsuna thought might have been called troubled passed across his handsome face. His hand rose to cradle Tsuna's cheek and, though his gaze darted down to the wound on Tsuna's neck once more, it was with concern and a certain distress.

'I should be asking you that,' he seemed to say.

Both of them turned, as Squalo — forgotten until now — took a step toward them. "Already finished? That was awfully fast, for your first feeding in a century," he said, staring down at the strange man. "Now, come along quietly, Primo."

Light glittered off his sword, the edge still stained with Tsuna's blood.

Primo's eyes lingered on the blade for a moment, before turning past Squalo, into the darkness behind the floodlights. His hand dropped down to Tsuna's shoulder and squeezed gently.

"I refuse," he said.

~.~.~

Primo moved before anyone could even process his refusal.

His arm darted around Tsuna's waist and dragged him up over the man's shoulder. His other hand came up, palm toward Squalo, and suddenly a powerful flame burst out, seemingly out of thin air.

Squalo managed to roll out of the way, but the floodlights behind him were completely destroyed by the heat and the shockwave generated by the blast. The unseen observers were yelling, some even screaming, and Squalo's other armed allies moved to attack. However, Primo was already gone.

Without waiting to see the outcome of his attack, he had turned and run. In just one, seemingly impossible leap, even with Tsuna's weight on his shoulder, he cleared the floodlights and landed well behind the array of what Tsuna could barely recognize as some kind of science equipment, set up a circle all around the place where Primo had been frozen.

Tsuna finally caught a glimpse of the rest of the area. They were in a massive underground chamber — parts appeared to have once been a natural cave, but the floor had been paved with worn bricks, and ruined pillars and walls hinted at structures that had once been erected inside the cavern for some no longer discernable purpose.

Among the old ruins, artifacts of the modern age had been scattered — power cables, lights, folding tables and chairs, even tents. All of it had been set up in a loose circle around the former location of the ice-crystal. They — whoever they were — must have been studying Primo, before executing their scheme to awaken him.

The people — researchers? — were panicking in the gloom that Tsuna's eyes hadn't adjusted to, but Primo didn't hesitate to dash past all of them, slipping between the crumbled stone structures and into the shadows. He glanced back for a moment, as a single figure separated itself and continued to pursue them — a boy about Tsuna's age, with messy blonde hair. There were knives in his hands, and in the next moment, they were flying.

Tsuna didn't have a chance to call out a warning, before Primo ducked aside, into a narrow passage between two half-collapsed walls. Another sharp turn, and they were in the air as Primo leaped halfway down a spiraling staircase that descended deeper into the stone wall of the cavern. He shifted his grip on Tsuna, pulling him down to his chest and holding him closer with one arm while the other came up again.

When their pursuer appeared around the curve of the staircase, he had only a moment to register the pulsing flame gathering in Primo's palm. Twisting to turn his momentum, he kicked off the wall and threw himself back up the stairs just as the blast of fire engulfed the narrow passage.

Primo had turned the moment the blast was released, shielding Tsuna, as the staircase collapsed. Thrown deeper into the passage by the force of the blast behind them, they hit the stone floor hard, though Primo took most of the blow.

His ears ringing and his mouth full of dust, Tsuna groaned pitifully. Everything was completely dark. A gentle hand gripped his shoulder, helping him sit up. A small flame flickered to life in Primo's other hand, illuminating the narrow stone tunnel they had ended up in and the wall of collapsed stone behind them, completely blocking the staircase.

"Do you understand me?" Primo asked quietly, once he could see that Tsuna was conscious and mostly uninjured. His accent and way of speaking was a little strange, but Tsuna nodded. "Good. This should keep them from following us immediately, but they might be aware where this tunnel leads. We need to hurry to make sure they can't catch us at the other end."

Gulping, despite his dry throat, Tsuna nodded again. "O-okay," he muttered. "But afterwards… please tell me what's going on. I, I don't understand any of this at all…"

Primo's expression darkened, but his anger didn't seem to be directed at Tsuna. "Very well," he said, standing and holding out his free hand to Tsuna. "I will tell you everything. But for now, please come with me."

Hesitating for only a moment, Tsuna took his hand. What other choice did he have?

~.~.~

The tunnel led to a crypt beneath an old, abandoned church. As they emerged up into the church, Primo raised his head and closed his eyes for a moment, as if listening to something far away.

"There's no one here," he judged. "Not even in the vicinity. Given the distance from here to Vongola headquarters over land… if they had known to pursue us here, they would have already been close, at least." He nodded to himself. "Then, it's safe enough to linger for a while."

With a sigh, Tsuna let himself collapse on one of the remaining pews. Part of the roof had long since caved in, and he could see a glimpse of the starry sky above.

For a long moment, Primo looked up at the stained altar, then shaking his head, he turned to gaze at Tsuna again. His eyes were no longer glowing, but the golden color was still almost inhuman.

"I promised to explain everything," he said. "Please listen carefully and, no matter how fantastical it sounds, understand that I am telling the truth."

Hesitantly, Tsuna nodded.

"First, my name is Giotto," he said. "Second, I am what you would call a vampire."

"V-vampire?!" Tsuna parroted in disbelief.

"One who drinks the blood of humans," Giotto confirmed.

And he had, hadn't he? In the cave, he had consumed Tsuna's blood. 'And those people expected him to,' Tsuna realized.

"I don't know what kind of folklore is common in this period," Giotto continued, "but vampires are likely not as you imagine. What we desire is not blood, exactly, but the Wave Energy that continually flows through every living human. Their life energy, in other words. The simplest way to consume another's Wave Energy is by drinking their blood."

'Wave Energy,' Tsuna mouthed, rather dubiously, but he didn't interrupt again. Just as Giotto said, it all sounded fantastical, but Tsuna had seen with his own eyes that there were things in this world he had never even imagined could exist.

"I did not want to become a monster that devoured others," Giotto continued quietly. "That is why, when I felt my compulsion to feed begin to overcome my restraint, I sealed myself away." He sighed quietly. "I did not think someone would go so far as to revive me…"

Tsuna nodded absently, lost in thought, as he tried to process what he had been told. "Okay," he said finally. "Okay. And I guess they used my blood to… revive you." He couldn't stop himself from twitching a little, at the very idea of going along with this, at having to say something that sounded so preposterous.

"They intended for you to become a sacrifice," Giotto said, anger creeping into his voice. He glanced away, and Tsuna could see his jaw flexing as he gritted his teeth. "The most likely outcome would be for me to feed until I killed you. Even then, they expected to need to subdue me by force. But for some reason, your blood is… very rich. Our Wave Energies must be very compatible. So I was able to come to my senses very quickly."

"That must be why my blood made your, um, ice melt," Tsuna said. "Why they kidnapped me in the first place."

"So you really didn't agree to any of this," Giotto sighed. "As I thought… It is because of me that you were involved in this. I'm sorry."

As he bowed deeply, Tsuna rushed to reassure him, "It's okay! It's not your fault!" But as he stood and tried to take a step toward Giotto, the man took a hurried step back.

"…It would be better if you did not come to close," Giotto said, hand coming up over his nose and mouth. "I can still… Your blood is… very tempting. My control… is not good right now."

Tsuna drew back as if stung. He couldn't help the thrill of fear that went through him at the warning.

What a situation he found himself in — between a being that wasn't even human and humans that were more like monsters.

~.~.~

"We should not linger here too long. We are still close to Vongola headquarters," Giotto said finally, breaking the heavy silence that had settled between them. Tsuna glanced at him from where he had curled up on one of the battered pews. "Can you run? I will provide a distraction while you escape."

"W-what? Run? By myself?" Tsuna stammered.

"I was their target from the start," Giotto said. "Now that I have been revived, there is a chance they will not pursue you further."

"And what if they still come after me?" Tsuna demanded. "I can't fight them! You don't really know what's going on either. There's no way to know if they're really going to give up. And on top of that, we're in Italy, aren't we? I was in Japan before! How am I supposed to get back? For that matter, we're in the middle of nowhere!"

"Nonetheless, separating would be the best decision," Giotto insisted. "It's more dangerous for you to stay close to me."

"Because they're going to come after you?" Tsuna said. "They dragged me here from halfway across the world. There must have been some special reason. I don't think they're just going to let me go home in peace."

"That's not it," Giotto said, looking away uncomfortably. He had begun to lean away as Tsuna leaned toward him. "It's not them I'm worried about…"

"You… you're worried about yourself?" Tsuna realized. "That you'll… bite me? D-do you really want to drink blood that much? Wait, how are you planning to travel yourself then? If you need to… bite someone, wouldn't it be better to do it with m-me, if my blood is more, um, filling?"

'What am I saying?' Tsuna wondered blankly. 'But it's true, isn't it? If he really hates it that much, I can't let him be forced to attack someone if I can help… even if it means, uh, donating some blood.' That was a nice way of thinking about it, he decided. Just a blood donation.

"Actually, if it's going to be a problem, maybe we should just get it over with," he muttered. Standing, he took a step toward Giotto, who jerked back hard enough to crash into the altar. Tsuna frowned. "It's fine, isn't it?" he said. "You stopped before, and it would've been even harder than, right?"

Every few words, he inched another step forward, making Giotto instinctively twitch. But even when they were close enough to reach out and touch, Giotto made no move to attack or anything of the sort. His expression hadn't changed either, still uneasy and apprehensive.

"…So?" Tsuna asked, after a few moments of silence.

"That was unwise," Giotto said, crossing his arms. He would have sounded sternly disapproving, but Tsuna thought there was something relieved in his tone.

"It's okay," Tsuna said. "Between you and those guys, I know who I trust more. I know that even if you end up biting me again, you'll stop like before."

Giotto's eyes widened in surprise. "You're… very trusting," he said, but he couldn't even force himself to sound truly displeased anymore. He didn't understand how Tsuna could trust him when he didn't even trust himself, but he couldn't deny that it warmed his heart. It made him feel a little more like a human being, and not a monster. "Very well. I suppose this is ultimately my responsibility. I will see you safely home," he said.

"Let's focus on getting to a Japanese embassy first," Tsuna said, beaming. "Then I can call my mom or something. I don't even have a passport. Getting back is going to be such a mess…"

As he rambled, Giotto could only watch him in bemusement. Tsuna's obvious relief made him relax a little as well. It was nice to be treated so casually, especially by a person who had every reason to fear him. Still, he didn't really understand what the boy was going on about. "That man said it has been a century since I sealed myself away," Giotto noted. "To start with, can you tell me what year it is?"

It seemed like he had a lot of catching up to do.

~.~.~


	2. Hunters

~.~.~

**Title:** Blood Ties

**Summary:** Vampire AU. Tsuna is kidnapped so his blood can be used to revive an ancient vampire. Fortunately, Giotto spares his life and helps him escape. Unfortunately, Vongola, the group Giotto had created, is now after them, and there is still the issue of why Giotto sealed himself away in the first place… (G27-ish)

~.~.~

**CHAPTER 2 Hunters**

Tsuna woke to the sound of Giotto softly calling his name. It took him a moment to remember where he was and how he had ended up there.

His legs had given out after only a couple hours of walking. To be honest, he had been surprised to last that long. He was the least athletic person in his entire school, on top of being kidnapped, knocked out for an unknown period of time and then losing some blood, though admittedly not too much.

With pursuit quite possibly right on their tails, there was no time to rest, and Giotto had just hauled Tsuna onto his back and continued walking, even as Tsuna himself nodded off, exhausted and worn out.

Now, it was daytime, some time in the afternoon, and Tsuna saw that they were approaching what looked like a town.

"So you're okay in sunlight," he muttered to himself. "And you were okay being in a church and stuff…"

"Of course," Giotto said, easily catching his words. "Why wouldn't I be? One of my friends was a priest."

"Um, no reason. It's just… the media portrayal of vampires is really off," Tsuna sighed.

'Media portrayal?' Giotto wondered, letting Tsuna off to stand on his own. His feet had fallen asleep, making Tsuna stumble and almost fall before Giotto caught his arm and steadied him.

"We're almost to town," Giotto said, "I will need your help once we're there. I imagine the world has changed quite a bit in the last century and a half."

So far, Giotto had taken in everything Tsuna said rather calmly - when told about things like cell phones and airplanes, he had just nodded and asked simple questions. In some ways, his underreaction was bit of a letdown to Tsuna. He supposed it helped that Giotto had lived in the nineteenth century, not the sixteenth or the sixth or something. Of course, if that had been the case, they probably wouldn't have even been able to talk to each other.

Still, hearing about things and seeing them in person was very different, and Tsuna thought that even the calm, capable Giotto might react when he first saw a car… or at least a busy intersection. He probably wouldn't scream, the way people in manga did, but he might jump in surprise, right? The thought made Tsuna grin in anticipation.

The anticipation meant the disappointment was that much greater when Giotto only hesitated for a moment as they entered town and walked just a little slower as he carefully studied everything around him. Despite what manga and television had led Tsuna to believe, it was apparently entirely possible for a person to adjust to horseless carriages and concrete sidewalks - and even tank tops and miniskirts.

Tsuna couldn't help but sigh.

"What's wrong?" Giotto asked, making Tsuna jump guiltily.

"Nothing… It's just, I really thought you'd react a little more," Tsuna admitted. "I guess the future isn't as impressive as I thought. I suppose in some ways things haven't changed all that much, huh?"

He fidgeted awkwardly as Giotto stared at him, his expression unreadable. "No, it's not that…" Giotto said finally. "It's just that I haven't been thinking of it like that. Amazing or not… I haven't even considered that. All I've been thinking about is… Is it dangerous? Is it useful? Things like that."

He looked around again, as if taking in the small town's neat streets, the little shops, the cars driving by once in a while. From the open door of the cafe they were passing by, cold air conditioned air and the loud strains of a radio washed over them, and Giotto blinked in surprise, as if noticing these things for the first time.

At the counter, a bored store clerk was staring fixedly into a small television, an old blockbuster flickering across the screen. Tsuna watched in some besument as Giotto's gaze was caught by the moving images and he began to lean over to get a better view.

At the sound of Tsuna's stifled chuckle, Giotto froze, caught in an awkward, half-bent pose. "W-well, it is certainly impressive, the future," he said, clearing his throat.

Tsuna couldn't hold it in anymore. He began to laugh.

Finally, even the unflappable Giotto's mask cracked a little.

~.~.~

Tsuna realized that his first impulse - to ask for help, to use a phone or even just for directions - was not particularly well thought out. Even if they had walked all through the night and the morning, they couldn't have possibly gotten very far. Getting sighted and drawing attention to themselves, especially in a small town where someone as foreign as Tsuna stood out easily, was a quick way to bring those hunting them down on their heads.

Their best bet, Tsuna figured, was to follow the largest road they could to a city - a place with crowds to blend into, with ATMs, and possibly with an embassy. But they couldn't afford to just walk along the roadside. That would also likely get them caught.

They needed a car. Neither Giotto nor Tsuna knew how to hotwire one, so they would need to steal someone's keys or one that was already running. They also didn't know how to drive, but Tsuna desperately hoped they would be able to figure it out.

Fortunately, a small town like the one they had ended up in didn't have much in the way of crime, and an opportunity arose soon. An old beaten truck pulled up in front of what Tsuna thought was the town general store. The driver, slipping out of his seat, left it running as he headed inside.

"Now!" Tsuna hissed. He and Giotto darted out of the alley they had been hiding in and ran toward the truck, Tsuna just barely remembering to go to the left instead of the right. He would be driving, having at least some familiarity with cars.

The way he slammed the clutch and roughly jerked the shift was completely copied from television, but it seemed to work. Despite the way the truck groaned, the engine roared and the tires squaled, their vehicle burst into motion when he stepped on the gas pedal, and that was good enough for Tsuna.

At the general store rapidly falling behind them, the owner raced outside and began to curse loudly. "Sorry!" Tsuna called over his shoulder, though he doubted the man could hear him and probably wouldn't be much comforted if he did. "Sorry," Tsuna repeated more quietly. But they didn't have much choice.

After just a little trial and error, Tsuna had them cruising along the highway at a decent speed, the truck no longer sounding as if it was about to give out at any moment. Letting out a sigh of relief, Tsuna spared a glance toward Giotto.

"We can turn on the radio. Or do you want to sleep a bit?" Tsuna offered. The two-lane road stretched out in front of them, completely empty and without landmarks. "It looks like we'll be driving along for a while."

Giotto had been watching everything with that calm, assessing gaze again, noting the way Tsuna's legs moved - the pedals he couldn't quite see from his position - and the way he shifted the clutch. He had even copied the way Tsuna had buckled in with the worn seat belt.

The way he hesitated to answer Tsuna's questions, mentally weighing something, made it clear there were still things he hadn't told Tsuna. In the end, Giotto nodded. "It would be for the best," he said. "Wake me up if anything changes. I don't need sleep the way a human does."

'But it does help somehow,' Tsuna guessed, as Giotto leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes. 'Conserving energy? He didn't drink much of my blood at all. Is he tired? How much does he even need to stay alive?'

He sighed quietly. Now that the idea was kind of starting to settle in, maybe, Tsuna was finding himself with more and more questions.

'I'll ask him later,' Tsuna decided. 'And offer to donate some more b-blood. If it's just a little, I should be fine, right?'

Just the thought of trying to broach the subject made Tsuna blush in embarrassment, but he had a feeling Giotto was even worse off. His expression, when he talked about feeding on people, hadn't been embarrassed. It had been ashamed, fundamentally so.

Lost in thought, Tsuna barely paid attention as he steered the truck into a sharp turn, between the side of hill and the river down below. He should have probably slowed down, with his view being blocked by the cliffside, but Tsuna was still too inexperienced to realize the danger - that he wasn't able to see what was around the bend, either incoming traffic, or anything else.

He had only a moment to understand what he was seeing - in the road ahead, positioned exactly so anyone coming from the direction of the town wouldn't notice it until too late, was a large armored vehicle. Parked perpendicular to the flow of traffic, it blocked the entire narrow road.

Tsuna slammed on the breaks instinctively and wrenched the wheel to the side. Tires squealed as the truck was sent sliding sideways, completely out of control. In the next moment - impact, as it collided with the armored vehicle, along its entire left side.

The side window and the windshield shattered, glass raining down on Tsuna. He must have banged his head against something, but at that point, Tsuna's memory went blank as everything slipped into darkness.

~.~.~

Giotto had woken at the screech of tires and the sudden pressure sideways. It was just enough time for him to brace for the impact, and he wasted no time in slipping off his seat belt and opening the passenger side door, even as he glanced at Tsuna. With a sense of relief, he saw that the boy was still breathing, his head hung limply in unconsciousness.

"You were completely right, boss," Squalo's voice carried across the strangely still crash site, as the man himself vaulted off the top of the armored vehicle to land on the truck's other side, blocking that escape route. "Predicting that they would go to that town, that they would get a car, that they would drive along this road… You saw through all of it. As expected… of the Vongola leader."

His cold eyes had met Giotto's, and there was no doubt he was aiming for a reaction. Giotto couldn't stop himself from growing still for a moment as his fears were confirmed.

'Vongola...' he thought, letting his eyes slip shut as he tried to gather himself. He had thought so from the start. The fact that they had been able to set up in the catacombs under the Vongola headquarter, the fact that Squalo had addressed him as "Primo" from the start, the short glimpses of their crest that he had seen while escaping… He had known this was very likely the case.

Squalo didn't take his eyes off Giotto, even as his attention shifted to the man who circled around the armored vehicle, his gait measured and unhurried. A long dark coat hung from his shoulders, swaying with each step. Bright decorations spilled out over the collar, in stark contrast to the man's dark hair and black-white outfit.

The scars across his face only made the look in his red eyes harsher. Something about him was almost painfully reminiscent of Ricardo, and Giotto found himself fighting off the same mixed feeling of sadness, anger and longing.

"I am Xanxus," the man announced, looking down on Giotto in a way Ricardo had never done, even when they disagreed without any hope of reconciliation, "the current leader of Vongola. So you're the one that founded it… Tch, I expected something more impressive."

"I am not entirely pleased with what I see either," Giotto murmured bitterly. Squaring his shoulders, he forced himself to face Xanxus with as much dignity as he could muster, alone, exhausted, and adrift in an unfamiliar era. "Why did you seek to awaken me?" he asked.

"Vongola has a use for you, trash," Xanxus sneered. "Your kind is rare, and there are many things we can gain by learning the secret behind your power… and taking it for ourselves."

"What does Vongola need that kind of power for?" Giotto wondered, frowning. "I created Vongola to protect humans from vampires, nothing more. Surely, in this modern age, you have weapons that can overcome the gap between vampires and humans."

"There's no need for you to know," Xanxus said dismissively.

He drew his weapons - twin pistols - before he had even finished speaking. Without a doubt, he was an experienced fighter. However, Giotto was not without experience himself. His reaction was even faster, darting forward and ducking down under Xanxus's sights. With a swift sweep of his arm, he knocked Xanxus's guns aside and drew back a fist. One punch, with a certain degree of power behind it, would be enough to knock out any human, he knew from experience.

Letting himself turn with the momentum of Giotto's deflection, Xanxus spun in a roundhouse kick to Giotto's head. It was blocked, Giotto abandoning his attack to bring one arm up to defend, but the force behind it almost made him buckle.

Were humans in the future that much stronger? Or… had he overestimated his own strength by that much?

His moment of distraction cost him. Before Giotto could react, Squalo attacked from behind, slashing across Giotto's back and side. Stumbling away weakly, Giotto raised his arm and tried to summon his flames.

His vision swam, and he knew he had pushed himself too far. The scent of his own blood was maddening, and he could feel his human mind slipping away.

Then, even the fear of losing himself was gone.

~.~.~

Tsuna regained consciousness slowly. His ears were ringing and his eyes refused to focus as he lazily blinked at the bent steering wheel and the broken windows. His thoughts were distant and scattered.

What happened? Where was he? Wasn't there… something? Something he should be doing? Something he should worry about?

Slowly, he turned his head, his entire body flopping back against the seat, the glass shards in his lap and on his shoulders chiming as they shifted. Out of the open passenger side door, he could see shapes moving.

Another blink, and they began to swim into focus.

Yellow - Giotto's bright golden hair, but something was wrong. Giotto stumbled back, raising one hand weakly, and then collapsed, his legs seemingly giving out. A flash of red, blood beginning to soak through the back of Giotto's shirt, before it was out of Tsuna's sight.

Silver - Squalo, crimson painting his sword as he slowly straightened and approached.

His words came distorted as if through a long tunnel. "That's it? Pathetic!" he sneered down at Giotto. His expression turned faintly thoughtful, or at least calculating. "He actually drove himself to this state? I didn't think one of them could hold off the hunger that long. I guess it's true, what they say about him. He really did create Vongola to hunt down even himself."

"Enough talk, trash." Black - a solid mass swimming at the corner of Tsuna's vision, speaking in a harsh, rumbling voice. "Restrain him, and finish this little mess."

Even scattered as he was, Tsuna felt a sharp sting of urgency. He had to do something, Tsuna knew with a blind certainty. But his body refused to react properly, and all he could do was twitch and groan painfully.

Squalo, who had begun to approach Giotto, his sword poised to strike at the first sign of movement, glanced at Tsuna for a moment.

That was enough. Giotto's eyes slid open, glowing with an unnatural light again, and he surged to his feet. Before Squalo could react, Giotto had moved with speed far beyond a human and grabbed his arm, twisting it until something cracked and tore. A hand on his throat pushed Squalo's head back, and sharp fangs sank into his neck.

Xanxus didn't waste his breath cursing. His guns snapped up, pointing toward Giotto, but the vampire swung Squalo's still struggling form between them, using it as a shield. He had perhaps expected Xanxus to hesitate to shoot his own subordinate, or perhaps he was too far gone for such complex thought.

Without a moment's pause, Xanxus pulled the trigger. His aim was impressive, one bullet clipping the side of Giotto's face as he continued to feed. However, another drove into Squalo's shoulder, making his body jerk.

In a single motion, Giotto unlatched his fangs from Squalo's neck and tossed him aside. His other arm simultaneously came up, in the familiar palm out gesture. Though Xanxus tried to dodge aside, the burst of flame that erupted from Giotto's hand hit him squarely and threw him back against the cliffside. The force of the blast was enough to leave a deep crater all around Xanxus, and a small landslide followed, half covering him in rocks and dirt.

Seeing both his opponents down, Giotto turned slowly to scan over narrow road, the armored vehicle blocking it and the crashed truck beside it. It seemed Xanxus and Squalo had come alone - they knew anyone below their caliber would not have stood a chance against Giotto, and the rest of their elite forces had probably been split between watching other possible escape points.

The danger had passed, at least for the moment. But… he was still so hungry.

It gnawed at him, constantly - an emptiness that never went away, a dull, throbbing ache in the pit of his stomach, a weakness in his limbs and down to his very bones. And now that he had tasted even a tiny fraction of relief… he couldn't stop.

Baring his fangs, Giotto advanced on the motionless forms of his opponents.

~.~.~

Tsuna had flinched as Giotto attacked, decimating first Squalo, then Xanxus. These were not the movements of the calm, controlled man he had been traveling with since the catacombs, but of the beast Giotto had warned Tsuna about. He wanted to cower away, to curl up and hide in hopes that it would not come after him next.

Giotto had warned him. Giotto had…

That was Giotto, Tsuna thought, barely believing it but unable to refuse that simple truth. That was Giotto, who had been so worried about Tsuna, who had tried to tell him to stay away. Seeing him like that, moving in such an unnatural way, blood sliding down his chin and staining his shirt…

It was a terrifying sight, but it was also saddening. It really was pitiful, to see that man reduced to this.

Caught between fear for himself and concern for Giotto, Tsuna could only stare motionlessly as Giotto raised his head and took stock of the battlefield. He couldn't begin to guess what the vampire would do next.

With a sinking feeling, Tsuna realized that Giotto was not going to return to his usual self even now that the battle was over. Instead, the vampire stalked toward Xanxus, half-buried in the rubble of the hillside. His fangs bared, his intent was clear.

This… this was not what Giotto wanted. This was what he had wanted to avoid above all else, even going so far as to seal himself away.

Panicked and still muddled from the crash, Tsuna fumbled with his seatbelt and scrambled out of the truck's open passenger side door. "W-wait!" he called out without thinking.

Tsuna trembled as the vampire's burning gaze turned on him, but as Giotto began to advance toward him instead, Tsuna's legs seemed to freeze and he found himself unable to even back away.

"Giotto-san! You have to stop! Otherwise… otherwise, you'll definitely regret it!" Tsuna begged, his breath coming in sharp gasps. Giotto didn't appear to even hear him, crowding against him and lowering his head until his breath brushed against the sensitive skin of Tsuna's neck.

Tsuna gasped as sharp fangs sank into the side of his throat. Clutching at the back of Giotto's shirt, he closed his eyes against the tears that had begun welling up. The pain of the wound, the warmth of his own blood flowing across his skin, the heat of Giotto's tongue lapping it up, and a strange pull that was unlike anything Tsuna had ever felt before… his head spun in confusion from the mixed sensations.

"Giotto-san…" Tsuna whimpered. 'It's okay,' he tried to tell himself. 'It's okay. This kind of wound won't kill me. And he said he doesn't need much of my blood. It'll be okay...' "Giotto-san, it's okay… so please wake up…"

And to his surprise and relief… Tsuna could feel something in Giotto's demeanor change, his muscles relaxing under Tsuna's hands.

Slowly, Giotto slipped his fangs out of Tsuna's flesh. With his senses returning, he could taste and smell the hated metallic essence of blood. But more than that, he could feel Tsuna's Wave Energy. Even as it thrummed through the body pressed against his own, it felt like it all belonged to him. That living, vibrant energy felt like an extension of his own form, all within his hands, and that sensation numbed the edge of his constant hunger.

It fooled his senses, and now Giotto understood why he had so badly miscalculated his own strength at the start of the battle. He had felt, subconsciously, as if Tsuna's Wave Energy, which he had touched so briefly in the cave, was still his to draw upon. That was why his hunger had seemingly been sated with such a small amount of blood - an illusion.

"Giotto-san?" Tsuna repeated, pulling back to look into Giotto's eyes, once more dimming of the unnatural glow. "Are you okay?"

Again that question. Giotto chuckled, just a hair's breadth from hysterical. How could Tsuna ask him that?

Tsuna frowned, seemingly seeing the path of his thoughts. But instead of asking anything further, he said, "We… we should get going. They might wake up or someone else might come…"

Closing his eyes for a moment, Giotto tried to pull himself together. This was no time or place to lose it. "...Yes," he said. "Of course. We should… We should go."

Tsuna's smaller hand slipped into his own for a moment and squeezed reassuringly before pulling away. Strangely, it was enough to make the trembling stop.

~.~.~

**Notes:** One question might be, "Why not kill Xanxus and Squalo while they have the chance?" I don't think Tsuna would be okay with that, just because he's still just a normal kid who has never even seen anyone die, so he'd hesitate, and Giotto is too emotionally unstable to even consider the option.

~.~.~


	3. Sire

~.~.~

**Title:** Blood Ties

**Summary:** Vampire AU. Tsuna is kidnapped so his blood can be used to revive an ancient vampire. Fortunately, Giotto spares his life and helps him escape. Unfortunately, Vongola, the group Giotto had created, is now after them, and there is still the issue of why Giotto sealed himself away in the first place… (G27-ish)

~.~.~

**CHAPTER 3 Sire**

"So those guys are all from… Vongola," Tsuna summarized, "which you founded to hunt vampires…"

After escaping from the Vongola, Giotto and Tsuna had ended up taking refuge in a barn. Exhausted, they had both passed out for the better part of a day. Now, sitting on the bales of hay, Giotto explained what he had learned from their pursuers and also his history with them.

"I hoped they would be able to stop me if I completely lost myself," Giotto said baldly, making Tsuna wince. "But… I suppose it started even before I sealed myself away. Everyone in Vongola… to fight vampires, they had to be people of exceptional power. They… began to revel in that power and to seek to increase it, for its own sake."

Tsuna watched sympathetically as Giotto became lost in memories. Vongola, which had been intended to protect all people, began to care only for its own interests - acting first as mercenaries in human conflicts, then gradually becoming an independent armed force.

"In particular, they coveted the power I have, as a vampire," Giotto continued, looking down at his hands. "You've witnessed it. As a vampire, I have the ability to manipulate the Wave Energy within my body, granting me strength exceeding a human's and also a unique power. In my case, the manipulation of heat, both flame and ice."

Nodding, Tsuna recalled the things he had seen Giotto do. Although Giotto hadn't mentioned it, the vampires' ability to go without food or other sustenance and to remain ageless stemmed from the same manipulation of Wave Energy.

"Of course, using those abilities requires that I feed on others to bolster my Wave Energy," Giotto explained. "In fact, that is the nature of the vampires' hunger. Our bodies produce enough Wave Energy to survive, about the same amount as a human, but our capacity for Wave Energy is much higher, and we continually feel incomplete. We are driven to try to fill that emptiness by draining the Wave Energy of others, but the more we feed, the greater the hunger grows…"

Since in the end that hunger was mostly psychological, the way Giotto's Wave Energy aligned with Tsuna's allowed his mind to play the reverse trick on him - to believe he had gained more energy than he needed.

Giotto sighed. "...Well, back to the point, Vongola back then wished to use my power. It seems their ambitions have no cooled even after a century."

Their methods had not changed much either. Ricardo, the man to whom Giotto had entrusted Vongola, had tried to convince Giotto to hold nothing back. What was the point of his power, if he did not use it to its full extent? And if someone had to be sacrificed, over and over again, then that was a perfectly acceptable price.

Giotto… had disagreed.

"Maybe… they had a good reason?" Tsuna suggested tentatively. "Maybe they need your help against, um, some really powerful vampire, one they couldn't beat without you, or something like that…"

"It doesn't matter," Giotto said bitterly. "Whatever their goal, they abducted you and tried to sacrifice you for the sake of my revival. They intended for you to die. That is not the Vongola I created. That is not how it should be. I… refuse to acknowledge them as Vongola. They are simply killers, barely better than the monsters they hunt."

Lost in his own dark thoughts, Giotto flinched in surprise as Tsuna suddenly jumped to his feet.

"They're not!" Tsuna snapped, finally losing his patience. "They're not any better at all! They're not better than you in any way! You're the one who's tried to protect me this whole time! The only one who cares what happens even to some useless kid like me! You're a better person than any of them!"

Giotto stared up at him shock, his usually controlled, stoic expression gone almost comically slack. He blinked, opening his mouth, hesitating, then looking away.

"...Thank you," Giotto managed finally, at a loss for what else to say. "That… means a lot to me."

His own actions catching up to him, Tsuna blushed and also averted his gaze. His eyes darted back as a hand hesitantly rested on his arm and Giotto leaned in, slowly coming to rest his forehead against Tsuna's shoulder.

"Hey, Tsuna," he said quietly. "Is it okay… if I stay with you for a while longer?" With Tsuna, who made him feel like…

Not a monster. Not a tool to gain power. Like a person. Like just himself.

"Of course," Tsuna murmured, resting his hand on Giotto's back. "Stay as long as you like."

~.~.~

In the end, Tsuna and Giotto couldn't hide out in barns or in the woods indefinitely. Tsuna needed to eat, after all, and for that matter so did Giotto, if he wanted to avoid using his vampire abilities and thus having to feed on someone.

That brought them to a new problem - their lack of money. Giotto literally had nothing except the clothes on his back, and the Vongola had taken Tsuna's cellphone and wallet, which would have only had yen anyway.

"Don't worry. I'll take care of it," Giotto assured Tsuna, smiling and patting him on the shoulder.

For a moment, he observed the people walking past the alley they had hidden in while discussing their immediate plans. Finding one that looked suitable, Giotto stepped out into the street and made to walk past the business man. Distracted by typing something out on his cellphone, the man didn't notice as Giotto's skilled hand slipped into his pocket and slipped out again with his wallet.

Walking a few more steps, Giotto casually doubled back to the alley and passed his prize to Tsuna. "Can we use it?" he asked, studying the cards inside with interest.

"Uh, yeah," Tsuna said slowly. "But… where did you learn that?"

"Just out on the streets," Giotto said, shrugging a little. "I picked it up pretty quickly… It was either that, or starve. Although I suppose even back then, I wasn't actually in danger of that..."

As a child, he hadn't realized the kind of power he held, or that he could easily overpower someone else and drain their very life to sustain his own more surely than bread ever could. It was probably for the best. After tasting someone else's energy for the first time, it became that much harder to resist the growing hunger.

'So he lived that kind of life, huh?' Tsuna thought, a little gloomily, as he quickly flipped through the businessman's wallet. The credit cards were useless to them, of course, but there was what looked like a reasonable amount of cash.

Emptying it out, Tsuna handed the wallet back to Giotto, who smiled faintly, with a hint of something Tsuna didn't understand, and shook his head. Before Tsuna could ask, he ducked into the small store next to them and made his way to the cashier. After a short exchange, Giotto handed the wallet over and returned to Tsuna's side.

He still had the same look and smile. "What?" Tsuna protested.

"It's nothing. Just…" Giotto chuckled, "you're a good kid."

"We're robbing a man," Tsuna pointed out dryly. "I don't think there's anything good going on here. Come on, let's get something to eat."

Giotto did the ordering, since they had decided he would stand out a little less, as long as he made sure the jacket they had "borrowed" covered the bloodstains on his shirt. Watching him smile charmingly at the girl behind the cafe's counter, who blushed and stammered helplessly, Tsuna wondered if they hadn't made a miscalculation after all. He hadn't thought about it before, but Giotto was pretty memorable himself - in a strikingly handsome way.

Tsuna was still brooding when Giotto handed over his sandwich. "Something wrong?" Giotto wondered, already biting into his own meal. He wasn't a picky eater, but maybe he had ordered the wrong thing. To be honest, he hadn't recognized much of anything on the menu.

"No, that's not it," Tsuna said, sighing. "It's just…"

His gaze was fixed on the battered payphone next to the cafe. He had only ever seen anything like in movies, but it was unmistakably a payphone. Even knowing it was a bad idea, Tsuna found himself wondering how much change it would take to make an international call. What was Japan's code again…?

He sighed, trying to shake away the useless thoughts.

"I want to call my mom," Tsuna admitted, under Giotto's worried look. "But it's a bad idea. There's no telling if they're tapping her phone or something. In movies, this kind of thing always gets you caught."

"But you're worried about her," Giotto said softly. 'And you're scared, and homesick,' he didn't say out loud. Looking at Tsuna's despondent expression, there was only one thing he could say. "Do it. Go ahead and call her."

Tsuna turned to stare at him in surprise. "I'm serious!" he protested. "There's really ways to… to listen in to people's phones and, and find out where they're calling from! What if it gets us in trouble?"

"Then I shall take care of it," Giotto said, smiling confidently.

It was almost unfair how inspiring he looked. Tsuna couldn't help but trust him.

~.~.~

"...Mom?"

"Tsu-kun? Is that you, Tsu-kun? Oh, I've been so worried! You just disappeared! I even called-"

"Mom, I don't have a lot of time," Tsuna cut her off quickly. International calls were expensive, and they didn't have much change left. "I just wanted… to tell you I'm okay. I'll be home soon." 'I hope.'

It wasn't as if there was anything she could do against a bunch of vampire hunters. It was better if she didn't worry any more.

"Oh, Tsu-kun…" Nana sniffled quietly, then said with a forced cheerfulness, "Okay! Mama will be waiting for you! I'll have a feast ready when you come home! For both of you!"

"Both? What do you mean, both?" Tsuna repeated, but the cut off dial tone was his only reply. The time he had bought had run out. Looking at the handset, he muttered, "I hadn't even told her I'm going to bring a friend…"

"Is something wrong?" Giotto asked, having remained standing nearby but not understanding a word of the Japanese conversation.

Sighing, Tsuna hung up and shook his head. "I'm not sure… But at least she sounded okay. Come on, we should get going. I'm still worried about the call getting traced."

Giotto nodded. "Shall we steal another car?" he asked.

Tsuna thought for a moment. "Maybe we better not," he said. "We're getting closer to civilization. If we try that again, they might put out an alert or something for the car, and the last thing we need is to get pulled over. We don't have a license between us… or any ID at all."

And it wasn't like they could tell the police the truth either. Not to mention, Tsuna worried if the Vongola would even hesitate to attack a police station. For all he knew, it would just lead to more casualties.

"Then what about a train? Do you still use those in this day and age?" Giotto suggested.

"That could work," Tsuna mused aloud. "I think they use trains a lot in Europe too. Buying a ticket might be no good, but maybe we can stow away on a cargo train?"

With that plan in mind, Giotto quickly charmed another young woman into telling him where the nearest active railroad ran. They found it easy and began to walk along the tracks. However, it wasn't long before Giotto suddenly stiffened and frowned.

"What's wrong?" Tsuna asked quietly, his brow furrowing in concern.

"We're being followed," Giotto murmured. "Looks like just one though. When I give you the signal, make a run for it. I'll take care of him."

Tsuna nodded hesitantly. It wasn't like he'd be much help in a fight, he acknowledged.

"Now!" Giotto yelled, giving Tsuna a push forward even as he spun around and darted in the opposite direction.

Tsuna took only a few steps before glancing back in concern. Giotto had moved in leaps, already upon the man who had been following, unnoticed by Tsuna. The stranger managed to duck under Giotto's roundhouse kick, which easily broke through the trunk of the nearest tree.

Giotto didn't give him a chance to retaliate, snapping out a punch as soon as his foot touched the ground again. This time, the man could only throw his arms up to block. He grunted under the force of the blow, though Giotto had fortunately held back enough not to break bone.

The man stumbled back, and as he lowered his eyes, Tsuna caught sight of his face for the first time.

"Giotto-san! Stop!" Tsuna yelled, just as his companion launched into another attack. "That's my father!"

Luckily, Giotto was able to stop his fist just short of caving Iemitsu's face in.

"Father?" he repeated, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Then why didn't you approach us from the start? Why sneak around in the shadows?"

Tsuna, who had hurried toward them, drew to a stop and looked between the two men with confusion and a growing sense of unease. He wanted to say Giotto was wrong, but… What did he even know about his father? He hadn't seen Iemitsu or heard from him in years. His perception of the world had been overturned in the last two days, and he found himself doubting everything.

Iemitsu hesitated, some emotion passing over his face as he glanced toward Tsuna and caught a glimpse of his thoughts.

"For that matter, it is too coincidental for you to be here," Giotto pressed, frowning. "How did you find us? How did you know to look in the first place? What is your involvement in this?"

"Dad, please," Tsuna spoke up, when Iemitsu continued to hesitate. "Just tell us what's going on. Do you know something about what's going on?"

"Us, huh?" Iemitsu sighed, stepping back in surrender. "That's why I didn't approach. I wasn't sure of the situation. If you were in trouble or…"

"If I had abducted him and was forcing him along," Giotto finished.

"Giotto-san wouldn't do something like that!" Tsuna protested, reflexively latching on to Giotto's arms as he defended the other passionately. "Giotto-san is a good person! He's been protecting me from… um, from…"

"From Vongola," Iemitsu said, grimly.

"So you do know," Giotto noted, tensing further, even as Iemitsu forced himself to relax.

"Yes," Iemitsu said. "I suppose I better start from the beginning… Tsuna, you know that Sawada is Nana's family name, which I took when we married. Iemitsu is also not my birth name. Rather, I was born in Italy. My father was the former leader of Vongola, the Ninth. Calm down," he held up his hands as Giotto scowled and Tsuna shifted a little to stand behind him, "I left Vongola a long time ago, before I even came to Japan the first time."

While Tsuna struggled to take in this new development, Giotto narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. "Is that why they came after Tsuna? A grudge? No… rather, is that why they knew to come after Tsuna? That he would have a Wave length so similar to mine?"

For the first time, Iemitsu's expression became easy to read - overcome with anger at Giotto's insinuation. "Watch what you say!" Iemitsu barked. "I would never hurt Tsuna! When Nana called me, I…" He shook his head, worry and distress clear on his face. "I knew what must have happened, so I headed to Italy right away. But it seemed like you were already gone from headquarters… I had someone monitoring the phone at home, just in case, so I knew when Tsuna called. It was easy to ask around town where you had headed…"

Tsuna ducked his head, shamefully. It was just as he had feared. He had known calling his mother was a bad idea. Of course such a stupid move would make it easy to find them.

"...But it's still too much of a coincidence," Giotto said, though his stance eased a little. "That your son would be so suited to… become the sacrifice to awaken me, and that they would know of that fact."

"You're right. It's not a coincidence," Iemitsu admitted, his jaw clenching as he looked away, avoiding Tsuna's curious, concerned gaze. "There is a reason for all that. Do you… Do you know about the 'Sin' blood?"

"Sin?" Giotto repeated, frowning. "You mean…"

"The 'Sin' blood was something that had been passed down through the generations of Vongola leaders - supposedly, a key to great power," Iemitsu explained pensively. "The power wielded by our organization's founder - by you."

Giotto sighed heavily. "It's my blood," he guessed. "I remember now. I gave Ricardo a vial, for research. They kept it all this time?"

Iemitsu nodded. "It was a precious, irreplaceable resource, so every boss hesitated to use it. Every one until the Ninth, that is. He invested heavily in research regarding Wave Energy and its manipulation. Finally, he authorized experiments involving the Sin blood… I was one of the participants."

Both Tsuna and Giotto stared at Iemitsu - the former in confusion, the latter in pure disbelief.

"I'll spare you the details," Iemitsu continued, quietly, "but the outcome was judged generally insufficient. While I did gain strength somewhat greater than an ordinary human, power like Primo and any true vampire remained-"

"What kind of fool are you?" Giotto burst out, his tone blank and cold. He gritted his teeth, ducking his head to hide his vicious glare. "Don't you understand? This power… It's a curse! I never wanted to be born like this. And for you go seeking that sort of existence… You're a fool!"

"Giotto-san…" Tsuna murmured, gripping his arm.

Iemitsu looked away as well, his expression grim and bitter. "You're right. I was a fool to agree," he said. "All I could think of was gaining more power, without realizing the consequences. And for a while, it seemed as if there would be none. I left Vongola for personal reasons and ended up in Japan. But then… I felt it too - that hunger, if only faintly."

Iemitsu glanced at Tsuna, who could only look back with confusing and concern. It was probably for the best that he had completely forgotten that incident.

"That's why I left home - to look for a solution." Iemitsu concluded.

"If it was that easy to find, I wouldn't have had to go so far," Giotto shot back, resentfully. However, when Tsuna patted his arm comfortingly, he backed down, breathing out heavily. "...It's too late to change anything now. I suppose that's likely why Tsuna's Wave length is so close to mine…"

"Xanxus would have the records of those experiments, so he took a guess that Tsuna's blood would be the most effective in reviving you," Iemitsu said. "But you're right. It was also a matter of his grudge."

'So there is a history there,' Giotto thought, frowning. 'But… it doesn't matter, for now.'

"Very well," he said, "I'll accept that. In that case, you will be able to take Tsuna home safely. From now on, protect him properly."

"Eh? B-but, Giotto-san! What about you?" Tsuna protested.

"Don't worry about me. I'll manage," Giotto told him ambiguously. Given, Tsuna's dubious expression, he didn't entirely believe that.

Iemitsu looked between the two of them thoughtfully, seeing the way Tsuna had all but clung to Giotto's side the entire time and the way Giotto still subconsciously kept himself between Iemitsu and Tsuna. "That may not be possible at the moment," he said finally. "Vongola is a worldwide organization with a great deal of influence. They will be watching all flights out of Italy and the borders. We'll have to lay low for a while first."

"Then do so," Giotto said with a frown, not understanding why Iemitsu was informing him of this.

"Why don't you come with us?" Tsuna offered. "You haven't decided what to do yet, right? And… I would feel better if you did."

To be honest, Tsuna was mostly worried that Giotto might do something foolish.

Giotto's mouth drew into a thin line, as he fought with himself, not wanting to leave Tsuna but believing that staying near him was also unwise.

"Actually, I would prefer if you went with Tsuna," Iemitsu commented. He smiled encouragingly. "You've done well to protect him so far. If you're with him, I can be sure he'll be alright. And I'll stay behind to distract Vongola's forces."

"Isn't that dangerous? Are you going to be okay? Maybe it's better if we all stay together," Tsuna protested.

Iemitsu laughed. "Don't underestimate your old man! I'm an experienced hunter, you know! Those greenhorns have nothing on me! And you two, just take the next train along these tracks to the nearest station. I asked one of my contacts to wait there in case I missed you. She'll take you to a safe house. We can meet up there."

"Ah…" Tsuna drew out, still uncertain, but Giotto only frowned and nodded.

"Fine," he said. 'Well, I'll feel better taking Tsuna somewhere safe myself,' he admitted to himself. To Tsuna, he added, "Come on. The sooner we escape, the sooner he can follow."

Taking Tsuna's hand, Giotto pulled him along, down along the railroad tracks, as Tsuna glanced back over his shoulder. Iemitsu watched them, smiling and waving, until he was certain Tsuna could no longer make out his expression.

Then, his smile dropped, leaving only grim determination.

~.~.~


	4. Vows

~.~.~

**Title:** Blood Ties

**Summary:** Vampire AU. Tsuna is kidnapped so his blood can be used to revive an ancient vampire. Fortunately, Giotto spares his life and helps him escape. Unfortunately, Vongola, the group Giotto had created, is now after them, and there is still the issue of why Giotto sealed himself away in the first place… (G27-ish)

~.~.~

**CHAPTER 4 Vows**

"I can see the station coming up," Giotto reported, leaning back into the cargo train car they had hidden inside of. The roar of the wind whipping past the narrow gap in the sliding door forced him to raise his voice. "But the train isn't slowing down. I don't think it's going to stop."

"Then what are we going to do? We need to get off there!" Tsuna exclaimed.

"We'll have to jump," Giotto said calmly and held out his hand.

Tsuna took it instinctively, even as he protested, "Jump? Out of a moving train?!"

"It's fine. I can do something like that easily, so just hold on. Ready?" Giotto said. He pulled Tsuna close and wrapped an arm around his waist, lifting him a little of his feet.

The train car door slid open, the wind making Tsuna squint. The scenery was rushing past as a dizzying speed, and Tsuna finally just hid his face against Giotto's shoulder. He felt Giotto's body tense, then pressure, followed by freefall, as Giotto leapt out of the train car.

They landed with a sharp jerk, but otherwise neatly, as the train roared past behind them. Straightening, Giotto eased Tsuna back onto his feet and stepped back to look around the train station.

"There's no one here," he noted, while Tsuna blinked quickly to regain his bearings. True to Giotto's words, the platform was deserted, and there was no one inside the station building either. Tsuna and Giotto exchanged a look.

"Maybe she's not here yet?" Tsuna offered. "Dad's contact, um…"

"Lal Mirch," Giotto finished.

Tsuna started to nod, recognizing the odd name, when Giotto suddenly stiffened, his eyes narrowing. Gently pushing Tsuna back, he turned to glare at the other edge of the platform - and the shadow that emerged from behind the building.

"Don't announce it so lightly," the woman who stepped out onto the platform said coldly. Or at least, Tsuna thought it was a woman, but her figure and the lower half of her face were hidden by a thick, long brown coat, the ends of her dark hair tucked into the upturned collar.

Tsuna felt her piercing, calculating gaze on him despite the wide sunglasses covering her eyes. He breathed a sigh of relief as her attention turned to Giotto once more.

"So you're Vongola's Primo," she commented. "I recognize you from the paintings. Then, they were successful. In that case, I'm surprised to see the boy still alive."

'She… she's really blunt,' Tsuna thought, sniffling a little. Giotto didn't seem any more pleased with her words.

"Relax. I'm Iemitsu's contact," she said blandly. "He's the one asked me to meet you here, in case he missed you. That unreliable idiot…" That part was added under her breath. Tsuna's father had a way of provoking that reaction in pretty much everyone except his wife. "But if you know my name, you must have spoken to him."

Giotto nodded. "That's right. He sent us ahead while he covered our trail. He said you would take Tsuna to a safe house. I will be accompanying you there."

The way he phrased that - implied all too clearly that he would not be staying - made Tsuna glance at him worriedly.

Lal Mirch studied Giotto for a moment longer, then nodded sharply. "Fine. Follow me," she ordered.

She didn't wait to see if they followed, only turning on her heel and stalking away. Tsuna and Giotto exchanged a look, shrugged, and hurried after her.

~.~.~

"H-how… much… further?" Tsuna panted, as they reached yet another bend in the narrow, overgrown road. They had already been walking for hours, and the sun was beginning to set. Stamina had never been Tsuna's strong point to start with, and the relentless pace Lal set left him exhausted.

"Do you want me to carry you?" Giotto offered, hanging back next to Tsuna.

Lal's gaze was sharp as she glanced back at them. "Stop dilly-dallying!" she barked.

Giotto only frowned faintly, but Tsuna flinched at her harsh tone, quickly straightening. "O-okay!" he called back, forcing his legs to move again.

"I meant it. I can carry you again," Giotto said quietly, keeping pace with Tsuna.

But Tsuna quickly shook his head. 'I can't keep being a dead weight,' he thought. 'I'm always slowing everyone down, making them worry - Dad, Giotto-san, even Lal Mirch. I have to pull it together. What good am I, if I can't even handle something like this?'

Fortunately, it turned out they didn't have much further to go. Around the next bend, their destination came into view - an old mansion, its facade overgrown with creeping vines. Lal paused at the rusted iron gates, seemingly studying something.

"Good," she said quietly, to herself, "the perimeter hasn't been disturbed. Follow me closely."

Again not even checking to see if they acknowledged her order, she vaulted straight over the gates - despite the fact that they were easily twice her height.

'How am I supposed to follow that?!' Tsuna thought wildly.

But before he could say anything, Giotto easily scooped him up and took a running leap - clearing the gates cleanly and landing on the other side just behind Lal.

When Giotto tried to set Tsuna back on his feet, he was surprised to find Tsuna clinging to him, arms around his neck. "D-don't do that. At least warn me!" Tsuna moaned, his heart pounding.

"Ah. Sorry about that," Giotto said sheepishly.

"Hurry up," Lal called back, looking over her shoulder irritably.

As they quickly moved to follow her, Lal circled around to the side of the mansion and then jumped up onto a small section of roof that jutted out between the first floor and the second. There, she levered open a window and climbed inside.

Turning to Tsuna, Giotto offered an encouraging smile. "Ready?" he said. "Hold on."

As he was once more picked up like a princess, Tsuna realized with some consternation, 'I'm getting carried after all. So much for making my way on my own two feet…'

Well, there wasn't much to be done in this situation. As a normal human, he couldn't leap two stories up from standing.

Tsuna frowned faintly, something about the thought registering as strange. As a normal human… 'Lal Mirch… Is she a human? Or a vampire like Giotto? Or… something else?'

The room Lal led them into was just as abandoned as the outside of the manor appeared. There was no furniture, and wallpaper was stained and yellowed with age. However, there was no dust on the floor, only a few dry leaves. Setting Tsuna down, Giotto closed the window again, as another leaf drifted in.

"So this is how you get in without making it seem like anyone lives here," Tsuna mused.

"The outer rooms are all like this, but the inner sections are set up for habitation," Lal said.

The doors she pushed open swung soundlessly, and with a flick of the light switch, the lights came on. The large room beyond was still mostly empty, but a few bedrolls were rolled up in one corner, along with several boxes - provisions and other necessities.

"Don't get too comfortable," Lal warned them. "We might have to leave at any moment, if they find us after all."

'I don't think it's even possible to be comfortable here,' Tsuna thought, sighing.

But at least it was mostly safe, Tsuna mused, chewing listlessly on a ratio bar from one of the boxes. That was something he had lacked, ever since he had been taken from his home. Even Giotto had allowed him to relax a little, rolling out bedrolls for the both of them - Lal having taken off to check the perimeter.

Tsuna drifted off to sleep as soon as his head hit the bedroll.

~.~.~

The second time Lal went to check the perimeter, Giotto followed her silently. He made no special effort to hide his presence, but Lal did not comment. She could tell he was checking the security systems and alarms in place around the safe house - judging if it was truly safe.

"Do you even understand what you're looking at?" Lal asked finally.

"For the most part," Giotto replied easily. "I asked Tsuna about these kinds of things, so I know how they function. And many are quite similar to things that existed even in my time."

Lal did not disagree. "Are you satisfied?" she asked instead.

"More or less. How likely is Vongola to find us here?"

"Less likely than almost anywhere else," Lal said. "Especially if Iemitsu can cover our trail."

Giotto nodded slowly. "What are your plans?"

"What about you?" Lal shot back.

"That will depend," Giotto said evenly. "If you only intended to bring us here and will now depart, I will wait for Iemitsu with Tsuna. If you plan to remain here, I will head out shortly."

"To do what?"

Despite Lal's sharp manner, Giotto had remained calm, even as he considered the question for a moment.

"To correct my mistake," he said finally. "Vongola - it was my mistake that allowed it to become like this. I should have dealt with it the moment I realized it was going wrong. But instead, I gave up and let Ricardo have his way. I abandoned my responsibilities and sealed myself away instead. I will correct that now."

Then, Tsuna could finally return home safely, the way Giotto had promised. It was the least he could do, for all the trouble he and the organization he founded had caused the boy.

"And how do you plan to do that?" Lal asked, fixing him with a flat stare. "Wipe them all out? That's impossible. Vongola is not like it was in your day. It's an international armed force. Entire wars have been decided by its involvement. It's practically a world power. One person, no matter how powerful, has no chance against it."

"I don't need to wipe out all of them," Giotto said. "If I can take out the top ranks, the rest will be thrown into disarray. Vongola itself will likely collapse, even if its component parts continue to function."

"And if someone manages to keep it together? Revive it?"

"Then I hope they create something better from the pieces," Giotto said simply. "Given the secretive nature of their activities, a lot of information will be lost. So perhaps the Vongola they create will be nothing like what it is now. I'm sure… that there are good people in Vongola too. People who believe in its original mission, who want to use its power to protect. Maybe something good can still come of it. I can only hope."

"If that's what you hope for, them why don't you do it?" Lal asked flatly. "Take over as the leader. Challenge Xanxus for the right, and reform Vongola yourself."

"That's…" Giotto hesitated, shifting uncertainly for the first time. "I don't believe that would be wise."

"Because you don't want to?" Lal pressed. "Because it would be too hard? You're just like Iemitsu. He could have taken over Vongola and become Decimo, you know. He could have changed it, since he disapproved so much. But instead, when Xanxus staked his claim, Iemitsu just backed down and left. You're the same, running away from your responsibilities."

"You're wrong," Giotto gritted out, turning away to hide his glare. "It's true that I ran away. But… it wasn't because I didn't want to do it. It's because I'm… You understand, don't you? I can't trust myself to remain human long enough to set things right."

Lal looked at him for a long moment, her lips pressed into a thin line. "...Yes," she admitted slowly. "I understand. Don't worry. Iemitsu asked me to look after his kid until he returned. So do as you will."

~.~.~

Still, despite having decided on his course of action, Giotto found himself hesitating to proceed. Or rather, he admitted, hesitating to tell Tsuna.

Though Giotto still found it baffling, the fact of the matter was that Tsuna had gotten attached to him. He trusted Giotto and wanted to stay together with him. Giotto wanted that to, of course - being with Tsuna was easy, letting something tense deep in his chest uncurl a little. He hadn't felt that kind of… acceptance since he said goodbye to his dear friends, so long ago now.

And even they had watched him with growing wariness, as Giotto slid closer and closer to the edge.

However, what he wanted didn't matter. The best thing for Tsuna would be to go with Lal and his father, under their protection, while Giotto eliminated the threat and ensured his future peace and safety. That was the least Giotto owed him, for creating this dangerou situation in the first place.

It was just that… Giotto kept putting off actually telling Tsuna, until Lal finally started shooting him clearly expectant looks. 'Tell him, or I will, you lily-livered pansy,' she seemed to say with her glare.

"Tsuna, I'd like to talk to you, if you have a minute," Giotto said, unusually hesitant.

His uncharacteristic behavior clearly worried Tsuna, who peered at him in concern. "Sure," he agreed easily, "but… are you okay, Giotto-san?"

"Yes… I'm fine…" Giotto answered distractedly, pulling Tsuna with him out of the saferoom. Lal had warned them not to wander around the mansion too much, so they wouldn't disturb its abandoned facade, but Giotto suspected Tsuna might want some time alone after this particular talk. And… it would be good for Tsuna to get some fresh air before Giotto left. Lal certainly wouldn't take him back out through the window, after all.

As they strolled along the overgrown paths of the back garden, Tsuna continued to shoot Giotto worried looks. Somehow, that just made it more difficult to get the words out.

Taking a deep breath, then hesitating, then taking another, Giotto finally began.

"The reason I wanted to speak with you, Tsuna, has to do with how we will proceed from here on out," Giotto said, awkwardly speaking in a terribly stilted way. "You see, Lal Mirch and I discussed the most suitable course of action, in terms of our goals and values. After a great deal of consideration, we determined that, in the near future, we will… that is to say… we should… it would be best for me to..."

Giotto trailed off, somehow unable to get the words out. They had come to a stop underneath an old, massive tree as he dithered, and Tsuna couldn't help but think, 'Get on with it! What is this, a cliche, overdrawn confession scene?!' The only thing they were missing was the school uniforms and sakura raining down on them, though the old tree's leaves made for a good substitute.

"We should split up," Giotto finally blurted out, closing his eyes and cringing against Tsuna's reaction.

'Not a confession… a break up?!'

Tsuna shook his head sharply. That wasn't the point here.

"Why?" Tsuna demanded. "Didn't we decide to stay together? Why do you want to leave?"

"It's not that I want to…" Giotto started, only to shake away the unproductive line of thought. "It's for the best. I'm going to deal with Vongola once and for all. I'll be able to move easier if I'm alone. Don't worry, Lal Mirch will stay with you until your father comes."

"That's not what I'm worried about!" Tsuna protested.

Giotto couldn't help smiling wryly. "I know," he murmured, feeling that same tiny curl of warmth in his chest. He ruffled Tsuna's hair. "Don't worry about me either. I'll be fine."

Biting his lip, Tsuna looked at him uncertainly. He couldn't explain, but somehow he had a terrible feeling - that if they said goodbye here, it would be forever. "Promise me," he said finally. "Promise me you'll come visit me in Japan. I'll introduce you to Mom and show you Namimori. There's… there's still lots of things I want to do with you."

'Promise me I'll see you again...'

Had Tsuna seen completely through him? Giotto wondered. It certainly felt that way. What a heavy promise - when, in truth, Giotto had planned to...

"Promise me!" Tsuna insisted, moving closer to Giotto, until they were almost pressed together.

"...I promise," Giotto said, smiling softly. He just hoped it wouldn't become a lie.

Tsuna beamed, relieved without quite realizing why. It felt like he had just managed to avoid some kind of terrible, unendurable fate.

However, Giotto's smile slipped away abruptly, a grim expression taking its place. Pushing Tsuna behind him, he turned toward the edge of the garden, his eyes narrowing as he peered into the overgrown woods beyond.

The next rustle, even Tsuna heard. There was definitely someone in forest, and they were coming closer.

"Wait," a soft voice called out, just as Giotto had been about to attack preemptively. "I am not an enemy."

A boy Tsuna's age stumbled into view, watching them almost as warily as they watched him. He held up one hand in surrender, but the other remained clutching his side. Despite his newfound paranoia, Tsuna couldn't help worrying about him - the stranger looked like he had been on the losing side of a fight, and not a schoolyard brawl either.

"My master… Iemitsu Sawada," the strange boy gasped out, swaying even as he leaned against one of the trees, "he's been captured by Vongola."

Then, he passed out in a dead faint.

~.~.~

"I know him. His name is Basil. He's Iemitsu's… apprentice, of sorts," Lal said.

After she confirmed his identity, they had moved the boy inside and begun tending to his wounds, which were fortunately numerous but not life-threatening. Or, rather, Tsuna tended to his wounds, with some help from Giotto, while Lal quickly and efficiently checked him and his belongings for any bugs or tracking devices.

"He's almost stupidly loyal, so he wouldn't betray Iemitsu," Lal said, concluding her search and turning up nothing. "If he says that idiot got himself captured, it must be true. So the question is, what are we going to do about it?"

"We have to help him!" Tsuna protested, almost incredulously.

"That would be unwise," Lal said flatly. "I don't have the power to go against Vongola. And they're going to use this to lay a trap for us… if they don't just kill him."

Giotto shot her a sharp look as Tsuna paled at the thought of his father dying, practically a deadbeat or not. Lal glared back, as if asking him what he would suggest.

"That's fine," Giotto said, turning away. "I intended to fight Vongola already. I'll break him out at the same time."

"You're awfully confident," Lal said dryly. "A rescue isn't the same as an assassination. They'll be expecting you. Even someone like you won't be able to go through the sort of defenses Vongola can put up."

"Then what if you help him?" Tsuna said quickly. "Maybe, if it's both of you…"

"You'd be left here alone," Giotto protested. "It's better if she stays here."

"I'm going," Lal decided. She ignored, again, Giotto's glare.

"What about Tsuna?" Giotto said, crossing his arms.

"She said she would only stay until Dad came, so it's not like she can stay here forever anyway," Tsuna put in, making a face at the way Giotto ignored him to talk to Lal. Didn't his opinion matter? "And I won't be alone. Basil will be here too."

Giotto glanced at the unconscious boy resting on one of the bedrolls, trying very hard not to look skeptical.

Leaning close, Lal told him under her breath, "From the start, I would only able to cover an escape. But with two of them, we wouldn't be able to move fast enough." Meaning that Lal wouldn't be able to carry both of them. "And I doubt Tsuna would let me leave Basil, or vice versa. The best thing to do is get Iemitsu out and deal with Vongola before they have a chance to find this place."

Frowning, Giotto looked between her, Tsuna and Basil's unconscious form. The quickly whirling thoughts were practically visible behind his eyes.

In the end, he could only sigh and give in. "...Fine," Giotto said. "Then let's do this quickly. We'll take down Vongola and free Iemitsu." It was the most logical thing. But somehow, Giotto couldn't shake an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Oh," Tsuna said suddenly, "before you go…"

~.~.~


	5. Nest

~.~.~

**Title:** Blood Ties

**Summary:** Vampire AU. Tsuna is kidnapped so his blood can be used to revive an ancient vampire. Fortunately, Giotto spares his life and helps him escape. Unfortunately, Vongola, the group Giotto had created, is now after them, and there is still the issue of why Giotto sealed himself away in the first place… (G27-ish)

**Notes:** Next chapter is the last one. It might be delayed because I just have absolutely no motivation for this story anymore...

~.~.~

**CHAPTER 5 Nest**

Coming to was a slow and painful process for Basil, his body aching from the wounds he had received and from pushing himself too far afterwards.

But more than any of that, the knowledge that he had left his master behind was agonizing. Even if it had been Iemitsu's decision and order, it still went against Basil's most fundamental instincts. At least he was able to accomplish his master's final orders.

...Right? Admittedly, Basil's memories were pretty fuzzy toward the end.

Energized by a sudden need to know if he had truly succeeded, Basil forced his eyes open. The blurry ceiling above was plain and somewhat old, at odds with the modern lights that came into view as Basil painstakingly turned his head.

There was another bedroll next to his. On it was a body, face down.

Before Basil could begin to panic properly, a low groan came from the body - very much alive - and it turned over enough to reveal the familiar face. Basil had seen that face, though younger and rounder, whenever his master got into a certain melancholy mood, enough so to pull out the single photograph he carried with him.

Sawada Tsunayoshi, ten years older than in the picture Iemitsu guarded zealously and occasionally cried over, groaned again and peered at Basil rather blearily.

"Oh, you're awake," he noted with some surprise, propping himself up on one elbow. "That's good. Lal Mirch said your wounds aren't serious, but I was worried… Do you need anything? Water? Food?"

"Y-Young Master…!" Basil tried to scramble into a proper groveling pose, but his body refused to obey properly. "My deepest apologies! Failing to protect Master, appearing before you in such a pathetic state-!"

"That's… that's okay, really," Tsuna tried to assure him. "I'm sure you did the best you could. And anyway, Dad's the one who's supposed to be looking after you. He's your… guardian, right?"

"Master took me in and trained me, even though I had nothing to give him," Basil explained. "Thus, I am deeply indebted to him. I pledged to serve him with all that I am… but I failed."

"It'll be fine," Tsuna said, reaching out to pat him on the shoulder. "Giotto-san and Lal Mirch will rescue Dad."

Once it looked like Basil was beginning to relax, Tsuna groaned quietly again and dropped back face down into his pillow.

"Is something the matter, Young Master?" Basil inquired worriedly. "Are you injured?"

"'S not it," Tsuna mumbled, his voice muffled. "I'm just light-headed. Urgh…"

Still, he didn't regret it - convincing Giotto to drink his blood. It had taken an inordinate amount of time, in the end once more assistance from Lal's increasingly expressive glares, but Tsuna had finally gotten his way. If Giotto was going to go against Vongola, then he needed to be in top shape, Tsuna had argued. And that meant having more energy to fight with.

Or was he planning to go back on his promise? Tsuna had asked pointedly.

Of course, now Tsuna was paying for it, though with nothing more than a minor case of blood loss. But for a sheltered kid like him, it was… debilitating. 'Still not sorry,' Tsuna told himself sternly. Better he feel a little off now, than Giotto end up unable to fight properly.

And… if he closed his eyes and breathed deeply, he almost thought he could feel the bond of that blood connecting them, even so far apart. He thought he could hear another heart beating in time with his own, with the same crimson blood, the same energy.

Like this, it was almost like Tsuna would be fighting together with Giotto.

~.~.~

As a third figure - their informant - slipped into the alley that was their designated meeting place, Giotto couldn't help but think that they made an incredibly suspicious scene. There was Lal, with her wide sunglasses and collar turned up, Giotto, with the cap Lal had given him pulled down low over his face, and their informant, his features hidden by his fur-lined hood.

They looked almost cliche in their shadiness. They were even meeting in a grimy abandoned back alley, and Giotto half expected someone to say, "So, you got the goods?" at any moment.

"So, do you have the information?" Lal said, making Giotto stifle a sigh.

The informant nervously tugged his hood down a little more. "Y-yeah," he muttered. "Everyone's talking about it - Nono's son was captured and taken to the old headquarters. It's like they're not even trying to hide it…"

"That's because they're not," Lal muttered. "It's a trap."

"Most likely," Giotto agreed.

"And speaking of traps, how do we know you're not just leading us into one?" Lal continued, somehow managing to loom over the informant despite being almost a head shorter.

The young man - judging by his voice and the smooth chin and jaw Giotto could see - made a valiant effort to stand his ground, but ultimately couldn't stop himself from cowering a little. "That's not true! I'm not doing anything like that!" he protested, waving his hands as if to show that he was unarmed.

"Is that so? Because your generosity is highly suspicious," Lal pressed, advancing on the young man, who tried to press himself into the dirty brick wall behind him in response. Giotto just shook his head at her interrogation tactics. "What's your angle? What are you getting out of this? Why are you betraying your organization?"

"I'm not betraying Vongola!" the young man burst out, sounding honestly angered by the very idea. "I'm doing this for Vongola! For everyone who doesn't agree with what Xanxus is doing! Because we can't just let Xanxus do as he pleases! Vongola isn't his private army! He didn't even bother giving any reason at all this time. He just kidnapped someone for, for just his old grudge! It's not right!"

'...So there are still people like in Vongola,' Giotto thought. He smiled faintly. 'I'm glad.'

"And what do you think Vongola is, if not a private army?" Lal humphed. "Face it, Vongola is nothing more than a mercenary gang that takes jobs even from criminals. That's what it's always been."

Even if her words were mostly true, Giotto twitched a little at the reminder of what his organization had become.

"That's not true! Vongola… Vongola protects people, from things no one else can fight!" their young informant insisted passionately. "That's why I joined! That's what Vongola should be!"

"But that is not what it is now," Giotto commented.

"We'll change it! We'll make Vongola what it should be!" the young man declared, getting carried away by his own passionate certainty. "That's why I have to unmask Xanxus and prove that he's not fit to lead Vongola!"

"So that's what you're really after…" Lal noted, somewhat pleased. "You're looking for evidence of things he's hidden from most of the organization."

"Ergh…"

"You're going to use us a distraction, to get proof that Xanxus is using Vongola for his own ends, to the detriment of the organization as a whole," Lal continued, crossing her arms. Each word was like an arrow, making their informant flinch and stoop a little more. "And then you'll be able to step in like a shining hero, marshall the discontents, and take over. Maybe if you're really lucky, we'll even take out a few of Xanxus's officers for you. And no one will ever have to know about your involvement in this. A pretty good deal for you - no risk, but so much to gain…"

'It's not like it matters to us,' Giotto thought, sighing. 'We'll be getting what we want too...' Of course, Lal's intent was just to rile up their informant and see if he would reveal anything useful.

"You're wrong! It's not like that!" the young man shouted. "I-I'll prove it to you! I'll go with you!"

"Huh?" Lal muttered, staring at him blankly.

"Huh?" Giotto looked up in surprise.

"I, I said, I'll go with you! To the old headquarters," the young man repeated, gulping nervously but squaring his shoulders. "I'll help you rescue Nono's son. I'll show you that I'm not just in this for myself!"

Lal recovered quickly, putting on her scornful act again. "Big words from someone hiding his face and name!"

'Though we're doing the same thing,' Giotto added dryly in his mind.

Not even stopping to think - otherwise, he probably would have thought better - the young man yanked back his hood, revealing slightly mussed golden hair and warm brown eyes.

"My name," he said fiercely, "is Dino Cavallone!"

~.~.~

It took Dino scan moments to realize what a foolish and reckless thing he had done, but by that point it was too late to take it back.

He continued to moan softly and mutter under his breath long after, as Giotto and Lal dragged him toward their destination - the castle that had served as the old Vongola headquarters. The place where Giotto had sealed himself away and been reawakened by Tsuna.

Given their hectic escape prior, this was Giotto's first chance to assess what had become of his once-home. The castle walls still stood strong, and though one tower held a slightly different shape, most of the structures seemed intact. However, the stone had been worn down and overgrown in many places, speaking of a lack of maintenance.

Frowning, Giotto noted, "It looks like the entrances are blocked off."

"Every entrance was supposed to have been sealed when this place was abandoned decades ago," Lal confirmed, still studying the castle through a pair of binoculars. "But it seems someone has been coming and going by helicopter."

She said "someone" rather sarcastically, given that they had no doubt about the castle's unknown occupants. They had even seen one of the helicopters fly by overhead.

"...I guess it's a good place to set up a trap," Dino muttered, finally pulling himself together, or maybe just becoming resigned to the mess he had gotten himself into. "I wonder if that's why Xanxus used it… or if he wanted some place dramatic and meaningful."

"It's not just recently," Lal contradicted. "Given the amount of air traffic in this region, someone has been using that place for quite a while."

"That may have been because of me," Giotto said quietly. "This is where I…" He gestured vaguely, knowing Lal would understand. As Dino glanced between them questioningly, Giotto quickly changed the subject. "The top-side entrances might be sealed, but there are several secret tunnels leading to the catacombs. I don't think Vongola knows about all of them, so we can try to find one that isn't blocked off or guarded…"

"That's how you got out, isn't it? They'll be on the lookout for that," Lal said, shaking her head. "I doubt they'll be keeping Iemitsu in the basement, so we'd have to go through a bottleneck up into the main castle. It'll be a nightmare."

Giotto shrugged a little. The castle passages to the catacombs were all carved out of thick, heavy stone, so he could just flood them with flames hot enough to incinerate anything that might stand in his way. But he had to admit that was not the most efficient way to go about things.

"Then, over the wall?" he offered.

Lal nodded.

"Wait, we're not actually going to scape that, are we?" Dino demanded, straightening in surprise and disbelief. "It's way too tall! It's almost all completely vertical! There aren't even any cracks large enough to get your fingers in!"

"Are you really a hunter, with that kind of attitude?" Lal managed to look down on him despite being quite a bit shorter. "You must be a complete rookie."

"I'm head of a division!" Dino protested.

In Giotto's time, Vongola hadn't had divisions, so that claim went over his head, but judging by Lal's look of honest surprise, it must have been pretty impressive for someone so young - and so apparently soft.

Something about Dino's scandalized expression made Giotto chuckle. Tsuna would have liked him, Giotto thought. He was glad that there were still people like that in Vongola.

"Don't worry," Giotto said. "I'll carry you."

That didn't seem to make Dino feel much better.

~.~.~

"So, um," Dino began uncertainly, "how exactly are we going over the wall? Because, well, I mean, I know you can jump really high, being… you know, but I don't think even you can go that high."

"Oh? So you did notice. That's good," Giotto commented, smiling. Dino's expression of befuddled curiosity reminded him of Tsuna, when the boy tried to make sense of the things Giotto explained to him, about Wave Energy and vampires. "Though I'm surprised you're so accepting, despite being a hunter…"

"Yes, well…" Dino shrugged awkwardly. "I heard even Vongola was founded by a vampire. So I guess vampires aren't all bad…"

It seemed he hadn't realized exactly which vampire Giotto was. That was probably for the best. Giotto did not want to see what his reaction would be - maybe Giotto was a coward like Lal had said, wanting to run from the expectations and responsibilities that would be placed on him. But he didn't think he would be able to lead Vongola well. He had already failed once, and he had no desire to try again.

Better to leave it to someone who still believed in Vongola's potential and future.

"I'm glad you think so," Giotto said, his smile widening.

Strangely, Dino seemed to turn a little red, looking away quickly. "Most people wouldn't agree with you," he mumbled, "but… it was a vampire that inspired me to become a hunter. N-not in the usual way! I mean… I did get attacked, but another vampire saved me."

He smiled in recollection, his expression fond and nostalgic.

"I didn't realize it at the time, of course. Actually, I thought he was a hunter for the longest time… But after I was trained, it was obvious he had fought in a way a human couldn't." Dino laughed a little. "Still, I can't help but think he was really cool, with his suit and his fedora…"

Walking ahead of them on the way to the old Vongola headquarters, Lal made a choking sound and stumbled a little. Dino and Giotto glanced at her in surprise.

"Him? He helped someone? Must have been just an accident, just by chance," Lal muttered under her breath. Feeling their curious stares on her back, Lal glared over her shoulder. "Enough chit chat!" she barked, as if daring them to object. "We're getting close now. Get ready!"

They walked for several steps in silence, before Dino leaned over toward Giotto and, holding a hand up in front of his mouth, whispered, "But, really, how are we getting over the wall?"

Giotto smiled and didn't reply. He wondered if Dino would squawk the way Tsuna tended to when Giotto manhandled him in and out of the mansion window.

By the time they reached the base of the castle wall, Dino was shifting from foot to foot with curiosity. Lal shot Giotto a scathing look before he could even ask if she needed help up. As she unbuttoned her coat, he saw the glint of a holstered weapon inside, before Lal turned away and raised her arm put. A wire and hook shot out from the gauntlet concealed by the coat's large sleeves, flying impressively far and fast to catch at the top of the wall.

Something inside the gauntlet clicked, and the line was reeled back in with enough force to yank Lal up toward the top.

"We better go too," Giotto said, smiling at Dino.

"But how-?!"

Dino's questions and protests were cut off as Giotto suddenly threw him over one shoulder. As Dino squawked, Giotto chuckled quietly, though his humor faded quickly into a determined, almost grim look.

Flames burst from his free hand, sending them both flying.

The extra weight unbalanced Giotto a little. It had been a long time since he carried someone like that, but he adjusted quickly, giving off just enough flame to carry them over the top of the wall at the same time as Lal completed her own ascent.

Both Lal and Giotto flipped over the parapet and landed neatly on top of the wall, their eyes scanning the wide walkway and the nearby rooftops for enemies.

"Hmph, I knew it," Lal muttered, her hand disappearing into the folds of her coat. "A trap. They've been waiting for us."

As Giotto set Dino back on his feet, fire flickered in both his hands. "So it would seem... but just this won't be enough," he commented blandly.

Dino did not quite share Giotto's calm confidence. He had drawn his whip, clutching the weapon in a white-knuckled grip, but his eyes darted nervously to the bulky, massive shape of a robot that rocketed toward them and dropped heavily in their way.

"The anti-vampire combat prototype, huh?" Lal muttered. "Fighting it will take too long. We'll make a run for it. It won't be able to follow us easy inside the castle."

The robot's optics focused on them, and completing some internal process, it raised its long, thick arms. The machinery within clicked, like a gun loading - that's exactly what it was, twin gatling guns changing into combat configuration.

But before it could commence attack, a flash grenade shot out with a snap of Lal's wrist. As it burst into blinding light in the next instance, all three of them had already turned their backs and begun to run.

Lal and Giotto glanced up in the same moment, their eyes narrowing. Lightning flashed out abruptly, striking along the top of the wall where they had been running, but all three of them jumped out of the way just in time, Dino following other two instinctively.

"Hold it! I won't let you vermin bother Boss! I'll-!"

A man in a black uniform, who had just arrived nearby, gestured with his arms to the remote devices that had generated the lightning strike, directing them for another attack, but Giotto moved faster - without even waiting for Xanxus's underling to finish his boast, he held up one hand, and a narrow, concentrated beam of flame shot out. With the reflexes and skill that made him an officer, the man managed to dodge aside, but the explosion that followed tossed him into an unforgiving stone wall hard enough to put him down for a while.

Giotto had barely broken stride, and Lal hadn't even bothered glancing back. They were almost to the nearest entrance into the castle proper, with no intention of stopping their charge - not even when another Vongola officer, this one with a wild mohawk, darted into their path.

"Hold it! Boss's orders-!"

This time, it was Lal who didn't bother waiting for him to finish speaking. The line shot from her gauntlet again, going clean through the man's thigh. With a sharp yank, Lal pulled his leg out from under him, artfully looping the line around his feet as he began to fall, tightening it until he was completely restrained and releasing it from her gauntlet.

As the officer writhed on the ground - and let out what sounded like a moan - the three of them darted past and into the castle's keep.

"You guys… you're really something else!" Dino exclaimed as they ran down the stone corridors. "Levi-A-Than and Lussuria are in Xanxus's inner circle, and you just breezed past them! And the anti-vampire combat robot prototype too!"

"Hunter in the present day certainly have some interesting abilities," Giotto commented mildly. "And technology has come a long way."

"More to the point, do you know where you're going?" Lal asked, since Giotto had taken the lead after they entered the castle building.

"Someone like that… he probably likes to be dramatic, right? To put on a show, to choose significant things," Giotto mused. "That's why he decided to come here, even though I would have the advantage of knowing the layout… Someone like that could only be in one place - the grandest room, the king's audience hall."

~.~.~


	6. Human

~.~.~

**Title:** Blood Ties

**Summary:** Vampire AU. Tsuna is kidnapped so his blood can be used to revive an ancient vampire. Fortunately, Giotto spares his life and helps him escape. Unfortunately, Vongola, the group Giotto had created, is now after them, and there is still the issue of why Giotto sealed himself away in the first place… (G27-ish)

**Notes:** Whatever. Also, this chapter is a lot more amusing if you go the Vampire Knight route and think of drinking blood as a metaphor for sex. No, really.

~.~.~

**CHAPTER 6 HUMAN**

Giotto drew back suddenly, cutting his forward momentum, and Lal did the same a fraction of a second after. It took Dino, who was following behind them both, three steps more to notice what they had sensed - which put him half a step ahead of them both.

He had reacted to their actions, but now Dino could see what had made Giotto and Lal stop. Almost invisible razor wire was stretched all across the hallway ahead, and in the distance there were signs of other traps.

"Should we go around?" Dino asked, glancing at the other two.

"...No, that's not the problem," Giotto said, raising one hand almost absently. Flames gathered and burst out, flooding the corridor in front of them. It was over a moment later, only the stone walls remaining, the air faintly shimmering with the heat. "Rather," Giotto continued, frowning, "why did we take so long to notice?"

He had not almost run into it, exactly, but Giotto had rarely come so close to a trap before becoming aware of it. Normally, he would not have even broken stride while destroying it from afar, but this time…

"Tch," Lal clicked her tongue. "It's an illusion. It must be…" She shook her head. "It'll be annoying to try to make it through his illusions. I'll take care of it. You go on ahead."

Giotto didn't spare more than a moment before nodding sharply and taking off, Dino following somewhat more uncertainly at his heels. Another flare of flame ahead marked their advance - and the discovery of more traps.

Lal didn't set off with the same urgency. Sighing, she closed her eyes and reached out with her senses. "If I was a money-grubbing little pest, where would I hide…?" she mused to herself. Her eyes opened, and she muttered, "Ah, there you are… Viper."

It was somewhat flattering, she supposed, that Giotto hadn't questioned her ability to see through the illusions almost as quickly as he did. Either he had a very high estimation of her skills, or he simply didn't understand how powerful his own intuition and perception was.

In truth, Lal had only noticed it that quickly because of her familiarity with illusions, especially that specific illusionist.

Her heels clicked against the stone floor as she strode briskly down the unfamiliar, abandoned corridors. She didn't run - she might be able to see through the illusions, but it was better not to chance it - but Lal couldn't help snorting under her breath. Their opponents were too straightforward in their thinking, she thought. The way to their trap was all but laid out thanks to the traps, and the way to where the illusionist hid was all but laid out thanks to their lack.

"Come on out, you illusionist!" Lal called, surreptitiously slipping her hands into the folds of her coat, where her weapons were hidden. With some instinct that couldn't be put into words, she knew someone was nearby, watching. If nothing else, the sheer killing intent directed at her was enough to tell.

In the end, Lal saw through the illusion just in time to duck around the barrage of knives flying toward her. Even though their path had been expertly curved to misdirect the opponent, Lal was too experienced to fall for such a trick. She drove a spinning kick into the place she knew - simply knew - her enemy was hidden, and was rewarded by the solid feeling of a body under her blow. Between one moment and the next, she could suddenly see her attacker, a teenager with something glinting in his overgrown blond hair, just as she slammed him into the stone wall with enough force to knock him out.

Lal snorted as he slid limply to the floor, unconscious. "Was he supposed to be guarding you?" she commented to the seemingly empty corridor. "All of these supposed elites need to go back to Basic before they can even hope to take on a vampire."

"Don't be like that," came a disembodied voice, before a cloaked figure slid into view next to her. "They're more than enough for most vampires. Most of our kind fall prey to the hunger and become nothing more than mindless beast not long after their powers awaken. We, the Arcobaleno, are elites ourselves, after all. Not to mention that this isn't how hunters do their work..."

"Yes, we the Arcobaleno," Lal repeated irritably, "so what do you think you're doing playing lackey to the Vongola? Why did you help them target Iemitsu? Why are you getting in my way, Viper?"

"I go by Mammon now," the illusionist muttered. "And it's all for the same purpose we've been working toward. The Vongola have some interesting research, you know. I've got nothing against that man - he's been helpful as well - but this is too good a chance to pass up. Vongola Primo was outstanding even among us, and that strange connection between him and the kid… I want to know more about it. I think… it might really hold the answer. Wouldn't that be worth it, Lal Mirch?"

"Worth what?" Lal asked sharply. Some note in Mammon's voice set her instincts on edge and made her hackles rise. "What have you done, Viper?"

The illusionist shook his head. "It's too late to do anything. For either of them. Xanxus, you know, he's really something, for a human. I don't think even Vongola Primo can win…"

~.~.~

Burning his way through the traps and lingering illusions, Giotto only slowed his pace when they approached the massive double doors of the grand audience hall. He barely paused in his brisk stride as his hands touched the thick metal doors - deceptively light and graceful, yet with enough force to fling the doors open.

The loud clang as they impacted the stone walls made Dino jump. His heart was beating so fast it practically felt like a steady hum.

There were three people in the audience hall - Xanxus, slouched in the ornate, ancient throne, Squalo, flanking him, though one arm was still tightly bound in a sling, and finally… Iemitsu's prone, chained up body, lying before the throne.

Giotto's eyes darted to him momentarily as he strode into the hall, and he felt a flash of worry. Iemitsu was still breathing, but something was definitely not right. Something about his Wave Energy pattern...

Xanxus chuckled, drawing Giotto's gaze to himself. "So you came, Primo," he drawled, smirking. "You're just as much of a fool as Secondo claimed. Sealing yourself away, coming to rescue this trash… That power is wasted on you."

He began to laugh, even as Giotto's eyes narrowed dangerously. "What have you done to Iemitsu?" Giotto cut to the chase.

"Your power… is really something else, isn't it? A human can't match it," Xanxus continued, ignoring Giotto's glare as he drew closer to the throne. "Even elite hunters, no matter what kind of weapons or skills they possess, play a game of luck every time they go into battle against one of you."

That was a cold, hard truth. Fighting a vampire was nearly impossible for a single human, and even with numbers and tactics on their side, hunters always suffered heavy losses. Nothing Giotto did changed that, back when he led Vongola. A vampire's increased physical parameters, senses and extra ability through manipulation of Wave Energy created a gap that was simply too wide to be bridged without sacrifice.

"But…" Xanxus snorted, looking down on Giotto. "I was wrong to think it was something so impressive. I got caught up in the old fools' obsession with you. When, in the end… you're just a beast." He had seen it for himself. No matter how controlled, how human Giotto seemed, he could easily become just another monster with no mercy or remorse.

Giotto didn't try to deny it. "I'm glad you understand why this blood is a curse," he said. "Then you can stop this now. There's no need to continue this senseless conflict."

"Senseless?" Xanxus laughed again, a short, barking sound. "There's plenty of sense in it… It's simple. This is what Vongola was created to do. It's time to erase this pathetic mistake - all of you trash, you, and him, and that worthless little brat too."

Just hearing Xanxus mention Tsuna infuriated Giotto, distracting him and making him advance toward Xanxus blindly. "And you think you're capable of that? It didn't work so well for you last time," he declared. "And this time… I won't hold back!"

Xanxus's lips pulled back in a bare-toothed smirk. "Oh, a human like me can't match you… but I won't be the one fighting you," he drawled, his eyes cold. But the one he was watching wasn't Giotto, it was… "After all, isn't it best… to let the beasts devour each other?"

...It was Iemitsu's body, as Giotto stepped closer. Too close.

Giotto's only warning was the way Iemitsu went rigid, before the man suddenly lunged for him. Caught off guard, Giotto was knocked off his feet and only his superior strength allowed him to hold Iemitsu at bay.

As the man pinning him snarled, Giotto could see the elongated fangs gleaming in Iemitsu's mouth and his hunger-maddened eyes.

There was no response from Iemitsu, even as Giotto yelled at him to wake up. All he could think of was the tantalizing energy thrumming through the living body beneath him, so much like his own, so appetizing. Just like a vampire, Iemitsu had been overtaken by his basest instincts.

~.~.~

Xanxus smirked as he watched Giotto and Iemitsu wrestle on the stone floor, both completely preoccupied - let the beasts take care of each other, as he had said. But he had no intention of waiting to see if one of them would triumph.

Instead, he raised one of his guns and took aim. An ordinary bullet wouldn't be enough to kill a vampire, if it were to even hit at all, but Xanxus had loaded special explosive rounds, just for this.

Seeing the gun pointed at Giotto and Iemitsu, Dino finally snapped out of his shocked stupor and burst into action. His own weapon snapped out, the whip wrapping around Xanxus's arm and throwing off his aim. Seemingly unconcerned, Xanxus glanced at Dino as if just remembering he was even there.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" It was Squalo who spoke, barking a demand as he glared at Dino. "Voi, Cavallone! What the hell did you even come here for?"

"I-I'm came to help the Ninth's son! I, I won't let you guys do whatever you want with Vongola!" Dino tried to shout back, though he ended up stammering nervously. It was one thing to declare his intentions to Giotto and Lal, but it was a whole other to try to stare down Xanxus and one of his officers, and Dino could feel himself trembling.

"So this trash is one of ours?" Xanxus drawled, more amused than angered even by his subordinate's betrayal. "Oh, that's right… that division leader you're always complaining about. What the hell were you doing, letting someone like that climb the ranks?"

"I didn't think he was this stupid!" Squalo barked, still glaring at Dino. "Are you seriously siding with these beasts?! And you call yourself a hunter!"

He gestured sharply behind Dino, toward Giotto and Iemitsu. Giotto had managed to kick Iemitsu off, all the way to the opposite wall of the audience hall. Iemitsu crashed into the wall with enough force to collapse the solid stone and, but the blow seemed to barely faze him, and their struggle continued out into the corridor.

The sounds of their battle made Dino twitch, but he refused to look away and leave himself open. Squalo and Xanxus as well continued to watch him without a hint of distraction.

"S-shut up! They're not all like that! It's not as if they want to be like that!" Dino protested, glaring back at Squalo. "You're the ones who did something to him!"

"No matter what they act like, they'll all end up like that in the end! Who do you think put me in this state?!" Squalo shouted back, gesturing to his own wounds.

Dino flinched and stumbled back half a step. "But that's…" he stammered half-heartedly.

"That's why we have to wipe them all out!" Squalo pressed, attacking the opening presented. "It's what Vongola exists for! That's our purpose!"

Unfortunately, he had miscalculated - he pushed too far.

Dino gritted his teeth, the words somehow grating. He couldn't help but reject them. Wipe out? Just beasts? Their purpose? What the hell did Squalo and Xanxus know about any of that?

"Don't act like you care about that!" Dino bust out, his sudden anger startling Squalo. "Don't act so high and mighty! You're not doing this because you think it's right! You don't care about Vongola's purpose! All you care about is your own power, your own ambitions!"

That was, after all, the real reason Dino had gone against Xanxus and his officers.

"You're right, Vongola is supposed to protect people from inhuman monsters," he said, sharp and unwavering, but much more controlled now. "But Vongola was created by a vampire. I was saved by a vampire back then. To them, this is a curse they never asked for. That's why Vongola began to research those abilities in the first place - to find a way to lift this curse!"

Letting his whip crack sharply, Dino glared at them both challengingly.

"That's what Vongola should be. And that is why you're not worthy of being our leader," he declared, tilting his chin up challengingly.

Squalo snarled, but whatever he began to say was drowned out by Xanxus's loud, boisterous laughter.

"And what, you are?" Xanxus asked mockingly, his lips twisted into an unsettling, sneering smile. "Are you going to challenge me for leadership? Is that it, you trash?"

Something low in Dino's gut trembled, like a small animal before a predator. But he wasn't an animal, and he wasn't prey. He was a hunter - he wouldn't roll over and play dead. To survive against a vampire, a hunter had to be lucky, but he also had to be skilled. And Dino was a veteran of more than one battle.

He wouldn't cower before a human, no matter how powerful or how intimidating.

He'd already said he would take back Vongola and change into what it was meant to be.

Squaring his shoulders and meeting Xanxus's crimson gaze, Dino said, "That's right. I, Dino Cavallone, challenge you for leadership of Vongola."

The moment of silence that seemed to follow was broken by Squalo. "Voiii!" he roared. "You've got some nerve-!"

"Fine," Xanxus cut him off, finally rising off his throne. But instead of attacking, he simply turned away. "I'll be waiting, if you've got the guts to show up. I'll bury you, you trash."

Dino watched him depart, stalking out through the half-hidden back door, Squalo following after a few seconds of hesitation. Then, he all but collapsed to the stone floor as his legs gave out under him.

Why did he always do this to himself?

But… there was no backing out now. One way or another, things - Vongola - were going to change.

~.~.~

Although Giotto had been able to free himself from Iemitsu's grip, he was at a loss on how to proceed. Even when he forced Iemitsu out of the audience hall and into the corridors beyond, he continued to attack Giotto with the obsessive focus of a vampire in the throes of hunger - with the same power and speed as well.

Even Giotto's strongest punch was caught with inhuman ease. The two appeared matched in strength, and unlike Giotto, Iemitsu wasn't in any state of mind to hold back.

At this rate, Giotto would be forced to resort to his flames. But if he did that… There was no "stun" setting.

Giotto gritted his teeth and tried to think.

It wasn't impossible to return from that mindless state. Giotto had fallen to it before… more times than he wished to remember. But it was never simple or quick or without sacrifice. There was no sure fire way. Just fighting Iemitsu wouldn't help, since every injury would just lead to him using more Wave Energy and hungering even more. But since Iemitsu had little experience fighting off a vampire's hunger, he was unlikely to wake up on his own either...

The only other option was to let him feed.

It was strange that Iemitsu seemed so fixated on Giotto, to the point that it was his approach that woke him and he even ignored the easier targets nearby. Vampires did not generally target other vampires. Giotto himself had never gone after another vampire in hunger - something about them registered as "unappetizing."

Was it due to Iemitsu only becoming this way from Giotto's blood? Were their Wave lengths similar, like Tsuna?

No, that couldn't be it. Giotto didn't feel the same subtle pull, as with Tsuna...

Tsuna… Giotto couldn't fail him. They had to make it back, all of them. He had promised.

Still, even supposing he let Iemitsu drink his blood - would that help? Even just the shock of gaining someone else's energy might be enough to jolt Iemitsu out of it, if this was his first time drinking blood.

But depending on how much he took, Giotto might end up going berserk instead. Could he trust himself to stay in control, even as his life was being drained away?

...Did he have a choice?

Tsuna had put his faith in Giotto, trusting him enough to even offer his life energy to support him. Giotto refused to pay him back by returning with only a corpse. In this, he would not fail.

When Iemitsu lunged for his next attack, Giotto didn't even try to dodge, taking the hit and letting himself be slammed into the wall behind him, hard enough to break a crater into the stone. Instinctively, he tensed, flames flickering in his hands, before he forced himself to remain still.

'So this is how they felt...' he thought, in the moment before Iemitsu's fangs pierced his neck.

The small jolt of pain was nothing compared to the nauseating unnatural sensation of his blood and his energy being drained away. His head spun, and the world seemed to fall away and simultaneously press down on him. It hurt. It was so cold. It was all wrong. He had to get away!

Throwing his head back, Giotto bared his own fangs, his only thought suddenly of getting free, of taking it all back, of needing more, desperately.

He had to fight. He had to live. He had to…

'Promise me!'

'Hold it together!' Giotto shouted, pleaded with himself. 'Don't lose control! Or else… or else, I'll never be able to face Tsuna again. I promised. He did this for me. I can, too. I have to...'

"Tsuna…" he whispered without thinking.

There was a low, startled gasp. It took Giotto a moment to realize it hadn't come from him. Iemitsu, who had been holding him against the stone, had suddenly gone still. The fangs in his neck were yanked out sharply, but Giotto barely noted the pain as Iemitsu all but flung himself away.

Collapsing against the opposite side of the hallway, Iemitsu raised a shaking hand to his face and slowly shook his head. Giotto could imagine what he was feeling - realizing what the strange, metallic taste in his mouth meant, his head slowly clearing, hazy memories returning in bits and pieces, thinking, 'What was I doing? What did I become?'

"It's okay," Giotto blurted out. That was what Tsuna had told him over and over again, and he hoped it would clear Iemitsu's heart a little, as it had for him.

"...Yeah," Iemitsu croaked. Shaking his head once more, he cleared his throat. "Yeah. It's fine. We're fine."

Somehow, they really were.

~.~.~

"What am I gonna do? What did I do? I'm gonna die. It's over. I'm dead," Dino whimpered, curled into a ball, arms covering his head. A dark cloud of doom seemed to hang over him, as he slowly rocked back and forth.

"It'll be fine!" Iemitsu declared energetically. Crouching next to Dino, he slapped the young hunter on the back with enough force to send him tumbling head over heels. "Don't worry. You don't have to do anything. It's my responsibility." An unusually serious look settled across his face. "I shouldn't have let Xanxus take over Vongola in the first place. It was my failing, and I will right it now. I'll be the one to face him… so there's no need for you to worry."

"So you're finally going to act? About time," Lal commented from nearby. She had arrived not too long after Xanxus and Squalo departed, once Mammon had also absconded. She couldn't deny some measure of relief at seeing all three of her temporary companions alive and even mostly uninjured.

Iemitsu shot her an exasperated look.

"If it's anyone's responsibility, it's mine," Giotto sighed. "From the start, I planned to be the one to deal with him. I apologize, for leaving you alone at that time. I will put an end to all of this."

Dino looked between the two of them, but there was no relief in his expression. "No," he said, sighing and sitting up with a serious look on his face. "That's not right. Neither of you want to lead Vongola, do you? You're not even part of it. This is something we have to do for ourselves. We can't just leave it to you guys. I already said I would fight him, and I will. It's my duty, as a hunter and as part of Vongola."

Both Iemitsu and Giotto looked dubious and ready to protest, but Lal was the one to slap them on the back this time, somehow making both men stumble despite her diminutive height and figure.

"Looks like you missed your chance. Suck it up," she told them without an ounce of sympathy. "This kid obviously has more balls than the two of you combined. More than I thought, definitely." She added the last part under her breath.

"Don't worry," Dino assured them, smiling. "I'm not a pushover either. And… I have too much to do, to lose to him. I think I understand now, what we've forgotten about vampires and our mission. It's not just to protect humans. It's to find a solution - for humans and vampires to live together. I'm sure that's what our founder would have wanted."

As he beamed at them, Lal sighed and shook her head. Apparently, Dino still hadn't realized that the founder in question was in front of him.

"There you have it," she said, slapping Iemitsu and Giotto on the back again. "So what are you going to do now?"

"Check on Tsuna and Basil, of course!" Iemitsu answered immediately. "And get Tsuna back home. Nana must be so worried! And after that… I'll keep looking."

"Yes," Giotto agreed. "I will as well. I'm sure there must be an answer somewhere. A way to escape this curse… I gave up too easily before, but now I understand there are many things I don't know about, that I've never seen. I'm going to keep searching. I'm going to believe that it exists, a way for humans and vampires to live together."

As the four of them began their trek out of the castle, Lal fell in step with Giotto, letting Iemitsu and Dino go on ahead. "You're not the only ones looking for the answer," she said quietly. "While you were sleeping, we searched too. If you want… I can introduce you. To the group that I'm part of."

"You're in a coven?" Giotto said, smiling faintly.

"Yeah," Lal sighed. "There's seven of us. So we're called the Arcobaleno."

~.~.~

**END**

**Final Notes:** I'm sorry for the abrupt, no-resolution ending, but I just really lost inspiration for this story and KHR in general. Here are some notes for what would have been the next arc of the story.

Vongola and Varia: The organization ends up splintering, with Vongola proper being led by Dino and continuing their efforts to protect people from vampires and other monsters. Varia would be a pretty straight-up mercenary force.

Vampires: We didn't have a chance to cover this point, but there is a second kind of vampire. They are ghoul-like undead, created when a vampire drains too much of a human's Wave Energy too quickly. The victim's body stops producing Wave Energy, although they don't physically die as such. They lose their human minds very quickly and begin to hunt indiscriminately.

True Ancestors: Greater emphasis would be placed on the question of what vampires really are and why they appear. After all, vampires are born from human families, seemingly at random. The reason is a usually dormant bloodline which belonged to their ancestors. These ancestors could not only manipulate their Wave Energy, but also produce an almost endless amount of it. Thus, they didn't have the same hunger. Vampires are an "incomplete" form of these ancestors. (Tsuna is actually a true ancestor, with a Wave Energy capacity far beyond a human, and it turns out he can manipulate his own Wave Energy too, just like Giotto.)

Arcobaleno: A group of vampires all cooperating and at least theoretically searching for a solution. Originally, the seventh member was Luce, but she disappeared, and Lal recruited Colonnello instead.

Tsuna and Giotto: Giotto leaves almost immediately after meeting up with Tsuna one more time. Tsuna does go home to reassure Nana, but he worries about Giotto and sets out to find him and ends up running into Reborn, who feeds on him a little, but notes his Wave Energy is strange...

And there you have the basic premise.

~.~.~


End file.
